Under the Shade of the Maple Tree
by Mapleshade Returns
Summary: What if... Many people believe it is pointless to believe in 'what if'. I don't. I live it every day. What if my kits did not drown? What if I had not fallen in love? Would I still be here? In the Dark Forest? I'm Mapleshade, and I have finally got a second chance.
1. Chapter 1

Allegiances:

_Thunderclan:_

Leader: Bramblestar- Large, dark brown tabby tom with muscular shoulders and amber eyes. He is mates with Foxclaw.

Deputy: Lionblaze- Golden tabby tom with amber eyes.

Medicine Cat: Jayfether- Grey tabby tom with clear, sightless blue eyes.

_Warriors:_

Toadleap: Large grey tom with green eyes. He is Squirrelflight's mate and former loner.

Dovefeather: Small, pale grey almost white she-cat with sparkling blue eyes. She is Ashfur's mate and former loner.

Foxclaw: Muscular she-cat with thick, red fur and green eyes. She is Bramblestar's mate and a former rogue.

Ashfur: Large grey tom.

Berrynose: Large, sturdy, cream-coloured tom with bright, amber eyes and a stump for a tail.

Greystripe: Large, long-haired grey tom. He is Silverstream's mate.

Dustpelt: Dark brown tabby tom.

Sandstorm: Pale ginger she-cat with green eyes.

Brackenfur: Golden brown tabby tom.

Cloudtail: Long haired white tom with blue eyes. He is mates with Brightheart.

Brightheart: White she-cat with ginger patches. She is missing one eye. Her mate is Cloudtail.

Silverstream: Beautiful silver-and-black she-cat with long claws and pretty dark blue eyes. She is mates with Greystripe.

Leafpool: Light brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes. She is mates with Crowfeather and a former medicine cat.

Crowfeather: Sleek, black tom with blue eyes. He is formally of Windclan.

Thornclaw: Golden brown tabby tom.

Birchfall: Light brown tabby tom.

Whitewing: White she-cat with green eyes. _Apprentice: Dewpaw_

Spiderleg: Long-limbed black tom with a brown underbelly and amber eyes. He is mates with Daisy. _Apprentice: Amberpaw_

Mousewhisker: Grey-and-white tom.

Cinderheart: Grey tabby she-cat.

Ivypool: Silver-and-white tabby she-cat with bright blue eyes. She was mates with Foxleap. _Apprentice: Snowpaw_

Dovewing: Pale grey she-cat with blue eyes.

Rosepetal: Dark cream she cat.

Poppyfrost: Tortoiseshell she-cat. _Apprentice Lillypaw_

Briarlight: Dark brown she-cat with a broken lower spine.

Blossomfall: Tortoiseshell and white she-cat.

Bumblestripe: Very pale grey tom with black stripes. _Apprentice: Seedpaw_

Cherryfall: Ginger she-cat.

Molewhisker: Brown and cream tom.

_Apprentices: _

Amberpaw: Pale ginger she-cat.

Snowpaw: White, fluffy tom.

Lillypaw: Tortoiseshell and white she-cat.

Seedpaw: Golden brown she-cat.

Dewpaw: Grey and white tom.

_Queens:_

Daisy: Cream long furred she-cat from horse place. She is mates with Spiderleg.

_Elders: _

Purdy: Plump tabby with a grey muzzle. He is a former loner.

**Ok! Here it is, Under the Shade of the Maple Tree! My first fan fiction! I know, you will not recognise some of the characters, or you will think they are dead. But hey, I am bringing Mapleshade back, why not bring the rest of them back to?! A proper explanation will be in the next chapter. Those were the allegiances of Thunderclan, and even though I did not do the other clans they will not play a big part in this story (or will they?) so I did not add them in. Ok, so enjoy the story!**

A tortoiseshell she-cat lay motionless next to a pool of dark water. The night air ruffled her fur as it blew, but she did not stir. The silence was broken by a sudden fit of sobs, and then, the she-cat let out a wail of despair.

"Why?! Why did Starclan pick on ME?! Oh, my beautiful kits…" Her sobs grew louder and eventually, she became too tired to carry on so she sat up. With a melancholy sigh, she dabbed at the water with her paw, watching as the water rippled. Suddenly, the water started to ripple on its own.

"Oh, Mapleshade," A soft voice whispered, making her jump. "You are not alone tonight, Starclan is with you now."

Mapleshade gave a disbelieving huff, but it soon turned into a gasp as she began to identify the sparkling outlines of cats, all around her.


	2. Falling From The Stars

"What do you mean? Why are you here? If you are here to jeer at me, don't. It's your fault I'm here!" Mapleshade hissed savagely. However, the starry cats seemed unfazed and simply began to circle her. There were cats of all shapes and sizes, colours and expressions, but they all had the same starry twinkle to their eyes and pelt. Some of them were like her; nearly completely see-through.

"All will be revealed soon Mapleshade. But for now all you need to know is that you were not meant to be banished from Thunderclan. You were meant to become its' leader. You fell from the stars when you did nothing wrong." The cat who spoke could not be seen. Yet he was in front of her. She could be heard all around her, yet only she could her him. He was male, yet female. Many cat's voices heard at once, but only one cat was speaking. It was in the distance, yet breath tickled her ear fur. The cats around her were watching her, all of them. The circles they made were getting tighter, and Mapleshade began to panic.

Still circling her, they began to chant. At first it was barely audible, just whispers on the wind. But slowly, the whispers began to grow louder, until Mapleshade could clearly make out the words. Smoke began to rise from the boggy ground at her paws, and no matter which way she turned, there was no way out.

_When the Sun's Beams begins to glow, the drought will start. The only Shade will be that of the Maple Tree_…

The words entered her head and she could not shake them out. Stumbling back, Mapleshade suddenly felt as though the ground beneath her paws was swiped away and replaced by cold, clammy water. Struggling, twisting, turning, there was no surface to the black depths. As she sank, the last thing Mapleshade saw was those eyes. The eyes that haunted her every time she tried to sleep. The eyes that belonged to a certain someone of her past. A certain someone named Appledusk.

A rough leaf-shaped thing was rubbing her head, and the smell of milk and warmth hit her as soon as Mapleshade began to gain feelings once more. _Where am I?_ She wondered. All of her senses were screaming at her that it was a nursery, but surely Starclan cats had just killed her? Had she not just drowned in the muddy bog of the Dark Forest while Starclan cats chanted some strange prophecy in her ears? _Oh well,_ she thought, _only one way to find out… _Cringing slightly, Mapleshade forced her eyes open. What she saw amazed her beyond belief. All around her, there were queens with kits mewling pitifully and just next to her was a huge queen with sparkling blue eyes, pretty white fur covering a slim, sleek body. She felt a sudden urge to get close to her, but she stopped in her tracks when she realized just how tall this queen was. Why was she so tall? Or maybe, she should be asking herself, why was_ she_ so _small_?

She looked down at herself, gaping as she first noticed her kit-like features. Although she still had the same tortoiseshell fur markings, her fur was fluffy and sticking out in all directions. But the most amazing thing was that she was no longer see-through, she looked like a living, breathing kitten.

_So that's why all these cats are so big. I'm a kit!_ She thought excitedly_. Maybe I am even… Am I alive? Do I have a new life? _Looking up at the white she-cat, she allowed herself to be picked up by the scruff and placed next to two other kittens. The larger of the two was a tabby tom with long claws. The other was a pretty dapple-grey she-kit with delicate features. She felt herself begin to grow tired, and as her eye lids started to droop, she sighed happily. Maybe Starclan weren't so bad after all. Only maybe.

The next day, Mapleshade (or was she now Maplekit?) was awoken by her mother tenderly licking her head. She opened her eyes to look up at her mother's pretty face. But today there was a new cat with her. He was a big, grey tom that was far taller than her mum.

"Ashfur, look! Maplekit has opened her eyes!" Cried the she-cat, turning to her mate.

"She is beautiful Dovefeather. What about Thornkit and Dapplekit?" The huge tom asked.

"Not yet. Thornkit has started trying to open his eyes, but Dapplekit is still sleeping."

_Thornkit? Dapplekit? Who are they? They must be my siblings! _Maplekit thought.

Struggling to her paws, Maplekit took a few wobbly steps forward towards her parents. She snuggled up to her mother's stomach before suckling and then nodding off to sleep once more.

The days went on like that. Wake up, eat, sleep, wake up, eat, sleep. Until Maplekit was about two weeks old, she did not move from her place beside her mother, unless she was being taken to dirt place or cooed at by clan members.

Now that Maplekit had enough energy, she hobbled over to her siblings and tried to wake them. It was more difficult than you might think. Firstly, whenever she went near her brother he would let out a HUGE snore which would scare her away. And when she tried to wake her little sister, she felt as though she was going to crush her with her rather large paws.

Taking a deep breath, Maplekit padded courageously up to her brother and prodded him defiantly in the ribs. To her shock, he immediately let out a wail, causing her to jump back. He too took off but instead of leaping to his paws he stumbled forwards into the briar bushes of the nursery wall. With a shriek of terror (which must have woken up the rest of the clan) he disappeared beneath the foliage, only to appear again crying out in horror. Stumbling forwards, Maplekit and her mother reached him at the same moment, and they supported him back over to the nest.

"Thornkit, what happened?!" Dovefeather asked gently once he had calmed down. Most of the clan had appeared and gathered around in a tight circle to see what had happened. Maplekit just sat there in quiet amazement, hoping that she would not be embarrassed publically by her brother. She knew he would not be saying it on purpose to get her in trouble, in fact she doubted he knew what trouble she would be in by saying she frightened him into the bushes.

_That's not _exactly _what happened… _She thought guiltily to herself. _He just sort of leaped for joy when he was in my presence… Yes, that's it. He just had a shock of seeing such… Regal beauty? He he he…._

But Maplekit knew that she would be in trouble if she was caught. She wasn't even doing anything wrong! _Oh well…_ she thought. _At least no one got hurt…_

**Well! There we go! First (official) chapter of Under the Maple Tree! I hope you are all enjoying it. (Did I end on a CLIFF HANGER?!) Ok, time to clear up the mysteries of Silverstream, Foxclaw ect. Ok, so basically I thought, why not bring the rest of them back while I am here?! So I brought back Ashfur to be with Dovefeather who is a rogue alongside Sky. Sky is Foxclaw and I will be calling her Sky from now on, not because I thought, Oh, let's just change stuff, but because that was her original name in my mind that I decided to return to. So any way, they come just before Ashfur threatens Squirrelflight, and they have with them Toad, who becomes Toadleap. When they come, Ashfur grows closer to Dove and so does not attack Squirrelflight. Squirrelflight decides it is time Brambleclaw new about her kits not actually belonging to her, but when she told him he was angry and their relationship collapsed… (Sorry SquirrelxBramble fans!) So Bramble star grows loser to Sky, Toad grows closer to Squirrelflight and while all of that is happening, Windclan find out about the kits and kick Crowfeather out. He goes to Thunderclan and is accepted while Leafpool becomes a warrior so that they can be together openly. Silverstream is not a re-incarnation; let's just say she survived kitting! Of course, her kits are not in the clan because they went on the journey, and you know the rest. Millie is not there because she did not stay with Greystripe when she learnt that he was mates with Silverstream! And there you have it! I hope you followed that, and I hope I added every one of the new characters. I really hope you enjoy this story, but before I leave, REVIEWS!**

**Birdflame: Thanks! I hope I will improve, as I am a new writer and I obviously will not be as amazing as others. Yet. **

**Riverfall: Yes, Mapleshade's life was hard!**

**Two reviews! I bet lots of writers think I am strange to say this, but I am so pleased with that. As a new writer, I am not very good at the moment. Although I am amongst the top in my English classes, that does not make me a good FanFiction writer. I hope I will improve along with this story, so NO ONE LOOSE HOPE! Thank you for reading and remember to review! It will only take a minute, but please don't be rude on there. If you don't like what you read, either stop reading this story and don't comment, OR give me some constructive criticism! I will work with it and try and become better. Ok, this A.N is becoming too long, so thanks again for reading! REVIEWS ARE WELCOME!**

**May Mapleshade be Loved Again~ **


	3. The Sun Comes Out

"Well? What happened?" questioned Dovefeather anxiously.

"Well… I… You see Mama… There was this…" started Thornkit.

"Get on with it!" Came a grouchy voice from the crowd.

_It's probably an elder with a flea problem_. Thought Maplekit, who was chuckling lightly to herself.

"I am! Ok, so you see Mama, There was this huge monster right behind me, and I had to jump up and fight! But it poked its sharp claws in my ribs and I had to duck for cover in the bushes and-"

"THE KIT WAS JUST PLAYING?!" Sandstorm, who had become grouchier with age, was practically fuming. "Just wait till I get my paws on you!" Although everyone knew Sandstorm did not mean it, Thornkit was wailing in terror- again.

Without really thinking, Maplekit called out, "It was my fault! I wanted to wake him up so I gave him a poke in the ribs because he was fast asleep! Kits these days- er, I mean kit just love to play and, erm, that's what I planned on doing." She managed to save herself from an awkward situation. Or at least, she had escaped _one_ awkward situation. Now the clan new she had done it. There was now a new problem in hand. Er, _paw_.

_Good going Maple. Good job._ She thought sarcastically to herself.

"Well, at least you owned up!" Her mother said hastily, before picking her up by the scruff and carrying her inside the nursery. But Maplekit barely noticed. She was in shock.

_Why did I help him? He is my brother, yes, but I never would have done this before… Ugh, I'm being NICE. This cannot be a good sign… Or maybe it could. If I want to become leader, which I do, then I need to be nice to win over my clan mates! _Maplekit was so distracted she did not notice her siblings come over to her until they were right next to her.

"Maplekit! Look at our new friends!" Called Dapplekit.

"Oh, hi!" She meowed, purring softly. Behind Dapplekit and Thornkit stood four other kits, two toms and two she-cats. The two toms were both quite handsome and tall, but one was black as night while the other was white as snow. The black one had deep blue eyes and a white tail tip, with broad shoulders and a long, fluffy tail. _He would make a fine warrior one day. _Maplekit thought, before turning to the other tom. He was shorter than his male companion by a mouse tail, but he had the same broad shoulders and fluffy tail. His eyes were a deep green and he had a grey stripe down his back.

The two she-cats, on the other paw, were quite a bit different in height and looks. The taller one was golden with a white chest and paws with pale green eyes. She was of slim build and looked perfect for a medicine cat role, apart from the long, sharp claw which even sheathed left marks in the sandy ground. The other female was small and stocky with black and ginger splodges. You could have called her tortoiseshell if it wasn't for the fact that she had no white at all in her pelt.

"Hi! I'm Ravenkit and these are my siblings, Snowkit, Sunkit and Treekit!" Meowed the night-furred tom.

"Hey…" Maplekit meowed un-enthusiastically. She really wasn't in the mood for playing with a bunch of over exited kits. _But then again,_ she thought, _I am a kit now, so I must act like one if I am to stay unnoticed…_

"Why don't we play some moss ball? Papa make us one this morning!" Suggested Snowkit. Everyone agreed, so the group of kits trooped outside and while Snowkit when to find the moss ball, Maplekit talked to Dapplekit.

"Are they nice kits?" Maplekit murmured to Dapplekit so that the others didn't hear.

"Oh yes! Sunkit is a bit grumpy sometimes but they are all nice to hang out with. I like Snowkit best. He's the strongest!" She added in a whisper. Maplekit ignored Dapplekit's kit-crush and simply said,

"No, I'm the strongest! You will all see!"

"We'll see about that!" Came a cocky mew from behind them. Whipping around, Maplekit came face to face with Ravenkit. She smirked as he mewed arrogantly, "My siblings have never beaten me in a moss ball game! No one can!"

"We'll see about that!" Came the reply as Dapplekit, Snowkit and Maplekit all puffed out their chests simultaneously.

"Ready, steady, GO!" Sunkit yowled. She had decided to sit it out, watching and being the judge for them all.

Maplekit leaped forward, bunching the kit-like muscles in her hind legs. She shot towards the moss ball and cuffed in over to Thornkit. He tossed it to Dapplekit, but when she tried hitting it to Maplekit, Ravenkit intercepted it. _He's OK at this…_ Maplekit thought smugly. _But not as good as me!_ With a flying leap, she landed on Ravenkit's shoulders. She pushed off again to land in front of him. Quick as an adder, she pawed the moss ball out from his paws and with an expert flick, hit it to Dapplekit.

From then on, the game was dominated by Maplekit and her siblings. By the end, the others were all out of breath, leaving just Maplekit panting slightly_. Good to see my muscles are still in shape!_ She thought happily.

"Woah, Maplekit, your amazing!" Ravenkit purred admiringly.

"Ah well, raw, natural talent I guess!" Maplekit sighed. Although it was clearly a joke, it infuriated Sunkit.

"No need to be so arrogant! You weren't even that good! I would have penalized you if it wasn't for the fact that my brothers are hung up on you!" Sunkit spat angrily. Before you could say 'mouse' her companions broke out into angry chatter. It was Snowkit who was loudest in the end.

"What do you mean, 'hung up on her'?! I am not! And Maplekit played by the rules! You're just jealous!" Snowkit accused. _Oh great,_ Maplekit thought, _more drama… _

Before anything could break out, the kit's parents arrived. They were herded into the nursery for the night, and that was that.

**Tadaa! Chapter 2! This is fun, writing all this!**

**Reviews:**

**Birdflame: I know! The great moment has arrived!**

**EradrinSkyLeaf: Thank you! I feel honoured!**

**Ok guys! We are on 4 reviews. We have lots of views though… and so can we reach 10? Ok, let's reach 5 first… But thank you! I'm pleased that people even**_** bother**_** to review in the first place so thanks so much! I hope you are all enjoying the story! Until next time, Maple is over and out.**

**May Mapleshade be Loved Again~**


	4. When Dares Go Wrong

The next few days were spent inside, as it was raining heavily and the mothers did not want their kits catching kitten-cough. However, the kits soon got bored and had to make up new, inside-friendly games to play. One such game was similar to what we humans might call 'truth or dare'.

The kits would sit in a circle, and then the kit who started would ask the kit next to them, 'Truth or Forfeit?' If the kit said truth, then of course they have to answer any question truthfully. But if the cat says forfeit then the kitten who asked the question got to tell them what to do.

Of course, the dares are different for cats. They can't kiss someone or do a silly dance, because they don't know what dancing or kissing is… So… I'll just let you see.

"I call first!" Maplekit yowled as soon as everyone got into a circle. She had gained reputation with the other kits and so she naturally was the leading figure for the band of kits. When no one argued (other than Sunkit muttering something about big headed fox hearts) Maplekit turned to Dapplekit who was next to her.

"Truth!" Dapplekit squeaked before Maplekit even opened her mouth. Maplekit grinned slyly. She knew just which question to ask to make her sister squirm.

"OK, who is your favourite tom, Snowkit or Ravenkit?"

Both toms looked hopefully at Dapplekit. Dapplekit was the prettiest she-kit (Sunkit would have something to say about that statement…) and although she obviously had a soft spot for Snowkit, Ravenkit practically threw himself at her at every chance he got.

"I… Uh..." She murmured. Finally, she whispered something that no one could really hear.

"Say that again. A bit louder please." Maplekit purred to her sister.

"Snowkit…" Dapplekit hissed before her ear tips burned bright pink in embarrassment. Ravenkit pouted slightly while Snowkit looked so pleased with himself that Maplekit was worried he would explode with pleasure.

"And now, on to the next kit!" Announced Thornkit hurriedly before the situation got any more awkward.

"Yes, MY turn!" Mewed Dapplekit, turning to Snowkit who was still sitting with his kit chest puffed out.

"Truth or Forfeit?" Dapplekit asked in her gentle voice.

"Forfeit." Came Snowkit's reply.

"Go outside and jump into the biggest puddle you find!" Came her immediate response. Looking slightly mortified, Snowkit got to his paws and looked around. Sunkit sniggered.

"I'm only doing it because Dapplekit said to!" He hissed at her, before giving the room a quick sweep with his gaze and charging outside. There was a huge _SPLASH! _And a muffled shriek of fright before a soaked Snowkit ran back inside, dripping everywhere. While some of the others laughed, Maplekit suddenly realised how stupid that was. Snowkit could freeze to death and her mother was asleep in the corner while Daisy was talking to the medicine cat about her paw. With a sigh, she got up and padded over to Snowkit.

"Come on, you'll freeze to death all wet like that." Maplekit sighed as she began to lick his fur the wrong way to warm him up. Mostly from Thornkit and Sunkit's side of the circle, there came some 'Ooohs!' and Dapplekit hid her face in her chest fur.

With a hiss, Maplekit showed some of her old, Mapleshade-in-a-mood attitude.

"Be quiet! Do you not think he could die if you just leave him standing there like that? Dapplekit should not have come up with such a ridiculous dare in the first place, but still! Am I the _only sensible _one around here?!" Maplekit spat. She hated it when cats got all big-headed, especially kits.

Quietly, Dapplekit got to her paws and scurried over.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have made you do that…" Dapplekit whispered in Snowkit's ear. With a quick 'Thank you' To Maplekit, she finished off drying out Snowkit's pelt. When Maplekit got back to the circle, it had noticeably shrunk. Looking around, she saw Dapplekit and Snowkit huddled together next to Dovefeather. They didn't speak; just lay there pressed against each other and the queen.

Ravenkit was slightly annoyed after Dapplekit's truth, but not he was nearly fuming. His sister, Treekit, tried her best to comfort him.

"Come on, let's get on with the game. There are loads of other she-cats out there who would die to sit next to you!" She fibbed. But it worked. Ravenkit was soon back to his fun self, if not a little stiff.

Thornkit made Sunkit lick his cheek when she refused to say whether she preferred him to Seedpaw, and Sunkit in turn made Treekit say whether she would rather have a fire ant in her nest or sleep in the same nest as Thornkit. She proudly announced that she would sleep with two fire ants if that was what it took to get Thornkit out of her nest.

She dared Ravenkit to go over to Sunkit and bite her tail. Let's just say that Ravenkit learnt about not underestimating she-cats.

Maplekit sighted. Now it was her turn. As soon as Ravenkit looked at her she knew that either choice was dangerous. Wanting to keep her secrets to herself, she chose the forfeit. She would regret that later.

"Say Ravenkit, you are the best warrior I have ever seen, OR, you have to sit right next to me for the rest of the game." Ravenkit announced loudly. Wow. She did not want to do either, but there was no way she was saying that he could fight better than her. Sometimes, pride had to be kept intact.

With a grimace, Maplekit pressed her fur against Ravenkit's and sat down. The rest of the game was torture. For one thing, Thornkit kept making romantic faces at her at every chance he got. Secondly, Sunkit was staring daggers at her. And worst of all, Ravenkit was_ enjoying_ himself. The little mouse-brained fool was sitting right up close to her, even licking the top of her head every now and then!

As soon as the game was over, Maplekit scrambled to her paws and stormed off to Dovefeather. She was still sleeping, and Snowkit and Dapplekit were over in a corner. She sat for ages, grooming the fur on top of her head and shooting dirty looks at Ravenkit. He returned each look with a charming smile. Ugh.

Maplekit decided to think about the prophecy that Starclan had told her before they sent her here. _Well, that's what it has to be, a prophecy. Ok, so I think I am the Maple and the Shade since my name is, or was, Mapleshade. The tree could be Treekit… But the Sun could be Sunkit and that would mean she was bad…_

_That can't be it! I mustn't turn the prophecy into something it isn't. I might be the Maple, but I cannot be the Shade because what are the chances that Bramblestar will name me Mapleshade at my warrior ceremony?! No, I must give the prophecy time to grow, or I could interpret it wrong and kill the wrong cat. Not that I will kill a cat…_

Just then, she was interrupted from her thoughts by Ravenkit. He sat down next to her and began talking to her about what he wanted to be, warrior or medicine cat, and how many kits he wanted, what their names would be, his perfect mate, what he was looking for in a she-cat, and so the list when on.

Maplekit had never been so glad to see sun light poking through the gaps in the nursery wall.

**Merry Christmas! I was thinking about putting this up on Christmas day, but I might not be able to get on the computer or something and then I would probably forget to come on for a few days… So I hope you enjoy this Christmas Eve instalment!**

**I want the kits to become apprentices soon but I can't just miss their entire kit-hood, can I? So maybe I will skip a few moons in chapters to come. Anyway, REVIEWS! **

**Birdflame: I know, Dovewing and Snowkit are drama queens (and kings!). But Snowkit is not as 'OMSC I'M SO SPECIAL' sort of thing. And he doesn't have a love triangle. Or maybe he does. MWA HA HA. **

**EradrinSkyLeaf: Thank you! I try to make them sweet. For now. And you are so right. MAPLESHADE NEEDS LOVE!**

**Spottedleafalways11: Thank you! I feel flattered. -.- But really, thank you for your support! I like being considered 'creative'. **

**Thank you every one! 8 reviews! I was hoping to get 5 and we have reached it! 10 is the new target. But I don't mind, it just makes me happy inside. O.o Thank you to all those who reviewed and I hope more of you who read this will review and enjoy!**

**May Mapleshade Be Loved Again~**


	5. Flimsy Kit Muscles

**Sorry I have not updated in a while! I was on holiday and there was no internet (at least, not enough internet) so I could not update. I know, a bad excuse, but there you go…! On to the next chapter!**

Maplekit and her siblings were just over three moons old by this point, and with the nursery becoming more and more crowded, things were getting a bit restless for the kits. Sky was having Bramblestar's kits, and since they were going to be the leader's kits, every cat in Thunderclan was preparing for their arrival.

The kits were due to be born at some point in leaf-bare, which meant fresh kill was needed to keep the queens and kits fed.

_Well by that point, I'll be an apprentice, so I will FINALLY be able to hunt for my clan! Honestly, Seedpaw can't even keep her balance while in her hunter's crouch! _Maplekit thought_. What if these kits are chosen to be leader just because they are Bramblestar's kits? I want to be leader! I'll have to prove myself… But I can't prove anything with these flimsy kit muscles! _

She decided she would start her own training early. She didn't need a mentor to practice her warrior skills! She would do it herself! And so, with that in mind, she began to creep out of her mother's nest.

It was very early in the morning, and only the cats on guard were actually awake. Stealthily, she crept past her siblings and Sky without a problem. It was when she came to Daisy's nest that the problems started.

Sunkit was sleeping quietly on her own on one part of the nest, while Treekit, Snowkit and Ravenkit were all bunched together in the other corner. As she crept past Treekit and Ravenkit, she heard whispering and little groans, while trying to dodge flying limbs and tails. She froze, but curiosity won over, and she peeped into the nest. The groaning was coming from Snowkit, and as she grew closer, she could make out what he was mewling.

"Dapplekit… Yes, I will be your mate… I'll protect you…" With a roll of her eyes, Maplekit turned away. Honestly, dreaming about the day Dapplekit asks you to be more that friends?!

Maplekit finally made it to the entrance of the den. Without looking back, she slipped out into the cool night air. She made her way around the outside of the nursery to a small, sandy patch of ground surrounded on one side by the wall of the camp, and the other shrouded with ferns.

Standing in the centre of the circle, Maplekit began to warm up by stretching her developing muscles and flexing her claws. When she thought she was reading, Maplekit began trying out some beginner moves, seeing how strong her muscles were.

They were stronger than she thought, and pretty soon she was testing out some more advanced defensive moves. She imagined the foe, a Riverclan warrior, and ducked and dodged her way around the imaginary enemy. With a deft paw, she pretended to claw the opponents legs, taking them out with a well aimed swipe before pouncing on her enemy. She was so caught up in her practice, that she could almost smell the RiverClanner's fishy breath, taste his blood on her tongue and feel his water proof fur beneath her paws.

She finished off her pretend enemy with a move she had come up with herself in the Dark Forest. She slipped beneath the enemy's stomach and kicked with her legs to throw them away. She would them leap on them and kill them quickly with a bite to the neck so hard, it would snap the spine of her foe immediately.

She jumped back, suddenly the stench of real blood surrounding her. She looked around desperately, but she was no longer in the clearing beside the nursery. She was back in the Dark Forest, watching herself train senior warriors of the living clans. She watched, mouth hanging slightly agar as she saw herself get angry at one of the warriors and use the very move she had just practiced to kill them. The warrior faded away into nothingness, and just before the images around her faded, Maplekit and Mapleshade locked eyes.

The piercing amber eyes of herself stayed clear in her mind as she stumbled away, snapping back to the reality of the clearing.

_I'm never using that move again!_ She told herself firmly, before shaking her head sadly. Maplekit padded back to the nursery but stopped outside it. She didn't want to go back in there again, where the air was stale and smelly.

She saw her father, Ashfur on the other side of the clearing, so she ran to him instead.

"What are you doing up so early?" Laughed her father, his handsome features screwed up in an attempt not to wake the rest of the camp.

"I was practicing becoming a warrior." She answered truthfully, and leapt onto his shoulder to bat at his ear.

Ashfur growled good naturedly and made to bat her off his shoulder with his tail but she leapt onto his head before her could do anything.

"Ha!" She laughed, covering his eyes with his paws. "You got out done by a kit!" Her crowing attracted the attention of Seedpaw, the arrogant she cat who Maplekit annoyed on a daily bases.

"You only won because he let you!" She sniggered in a high pitched mew. Before her father could come to her defence, Maplekit leapt nimbly down from his head and landed in front of Seedpaw.

"I could beat you any day!" She declared, raising her chin and grinning. "I bet I could beat you and your apprentice friends in my sleep!"

Half of Maplekit was cheering her on, willing Seedpaw to except her challenge. The other half was screaming at her to run now, or else she would either be beaten by Seedpaw because the apprentice was bigger or she would reveal how much she new in the ways of battle.

"Yeah right!" Seedpaw smirked, getting into a crouch. But before she could launch her attack, Maplekit had already leapt onto her back and was pretending to claw Seedpaw's flanks with sheathed claws.

Seedpaw screeched, bringing most of the clan out of their dens. The stopped and stared as the muscular apprentice play fought with the three-moon-old kit.

Maplekit, with sheathed claws, jumped off just in time to avoid being crushed by Seedpaw who had rolled onto he back in an attempt to dislodge the kit. Unable to suppress a sneer, Maplekit leapt again, landing in front of Seedpaw. The golden-brown she cat snarled quietly and tried to swipe Maplekit's paws out from under her, but Maplekit was too fast. As quick as an adder, Maplekit jumped to avoid the flailing paws and dodged beneath Seedpaw's stomach. Pushing upwards with her back legs, she kicked Seedpaw away and the apprentice landed with a huff.

Before she knew what she was doing, Maplekit had leapt, landing onto the struggling she cat and was just about to bite down hard on her neck. She drew back and put a paw on Seedpaw's neck instead.

"Dead!" She declared, before jumping off and allowing Seedpaw up. It was then that she realized that more than half the camp had seen the battle, but had not interfered because to them it was harmless play. Bumblestripe stood, shaking his head, most likely wondering how a kit had beaten his apprentice. Those who watched had been sat at the edges of the camp, watching from the shadows as the two she-cats had rolled around camp.

Maplekit padded over to her father and watched as Seedpaw limped over to the apprentice den, greeted by shocked and accusing mews. Turning away, Maplekit looked up at her father.

"You didn't let me win because I'm a kit, did you Ashfur?" Maplekit asked suddenly.

"If you want, I will make sure you only win if I think it's fair." He replied, blue eyes shining.

_That doesn't answer my question, but oh well…_ Maplekit thought. She watched as her father padded off to join the dawn patrol, leaving her to her own devices. _I'll be like him one day. I'll be the most respected warrior in the clans! _

She looked around camp to find something to do. Suddenly, she saw Lionblaze's tail sticking out from his place in the shade next to the warrior's den. Creeping around the edge of camp, Maplekit snuck up to it and pounced, making Lionblaze nearly choke in surprise with the mouse her was eating. Bramblestar, next to him, purred in amusement.

"Hi Lionblaze! Hi Bramblestar!" Maplekit purred, climbing up Lionblaze's back. She slid off to face Bramblestar. She opened her eyes wide and mewed, "When I become an apprentice, do you think I could beat all of the warriors in camp?"

Bramblestar chuckled and closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened his eyes again, Maplekit almost gaped at how their amber depths looked just like Mapleshade's in the Dark Forest.

"Maybe, but you need to be trained properly first. Then you can become the respected warrior you want to be."

"Oh, ok then… But I am going to be the best fighter in all the clans! Just watch! I will be so strong I could fight off a badger!" Maplekit's eyes sparkled with excitement at the thought.

"Woah, slow down. Warriors don't need to attack badgers to be strong." Bramblestar reasoned. He was just about to continue when a yowl erupted from the nursery.

"Maplekit! Come here now! You need to get you fur washed and have something to eat!" Dovefeather's cry rang out through the clearing.

Rolling her eyes, Maplekit obeyed, calling a hurried goodbye over her shoulder to Bramblestar and Lionblaze.

Lionblaze's POV:

He watched her scamper off towards the nursery. Well, actually, she sort of glided across the camp. Every cat could see it. She had a regal air about her that even when she was battling with Seedpaw, she had retained.

"She will be a great asset to the clan when she is older." Bramblestar's deep mew interrupted his thoughts.

"Yes, she will. Who do you want to be her mentor?" Lionblaze replied, turning back to Bramblestar.

"It is too early to think about mentors right now, surely!" Bramblestar teased Lionblaze, before turning serious. "I think she needs a senior warrior, or at least an experienced one. Greystripe maybe. He might be getting on in years but he would be able to teach her that battle and glory isn't everything. She would be a great leader one day if she would just stop thinking about battle and power." Bramblestar looked thoughtful for a moment, but then he turned back to Lionblaze.

"I'm going to visit Sky now, organise the patrols please Lionblaze. Make sure the Riverclan border is secure, those fish-faces are getting to comfortable near sunning rocks for my liking." And with that Bramblestar padded off towards the nursery.

Lionblaze organised the patrols for the rest of the day, thinking about the hunger in Maplekit's eyes as she spoke of her future.

**YAY! This is my longest chapter yet, I think! I hope you enjoyed it! I finally have the story fully planned out! Not that I didn't know what was going on before. I hope you all enjoyed your Christmas and New Year! I did!**

**So what is Maplekit doing, going all power hungry?! REVIEWS! **

**Birdflame: They do, don't they? Although, Maplekit doesn't seem to keen...**

**Splinterclaw: Thank you! I'm flattered.**

**EradrinSkyLeaf: I know, very sweet kits. :3 Glad you enjoyed it.**

**Dark Hollyleaf: Thank you! I have written another chapter for you! And what is Flamazing? Fabulous and amazing put together?**

**Thank you all for your kind reviews! I will be updating again more often, now that I am back home again!**

**~May Mapleshade be Loved Again~**


	6. Why You!

**I'm updating quickly these days. **

Maplekit, after two moons of her own 'mini training', had grown a lot in muscles and size. She was the biggest of all the kits in the nursery with Ravenkit up to her chin and Snow kit up to her chest. She was nearly the size of Seedpaw, and definitely had more muscles than her.

So that the other cats in camp didn't get suspicious of Maplekit's growth spurt, she had been coming up with her own moves (or at least moves she adapted from the Dark Forest) in the centre of camp. Today, she was ducking and twisting around her imaginary enemy, pretending to nip and bite at its ankles and ears.

Making sure she still had a kit's aim and attack, she pretended to stumble slightly on some of her moves so that she didn't seem to be at warrior level. A deep voice from behind startled her.

"Loosen your tail and try that move again. It is dragging on the ground and could through you off balance." Whipping around, Maplekit came face to face with Greystripe. The senior warrior had a twinkle in his eye as Maplekit tried the move again, this time hovering her tail above the ground, letting it wave about whilst she moved.

"Good, you're a natural!" Greystripe praised. Maplekit decided she liked this warrior. He seemed easy going and good natured, as well as a skilled fighter.

"When I'm an apprentice, will you mentor me? Do you know? I'm nearly an apprentice. I passed my five moon marker ages ago!" Maplekit squeaked, still annoyed with her high-pitched kit voice.

Greystripe chuckled and sat down beside her.

"Maybe I will. But that's Bramblestar's decision. And anyway, surely you want a great warrior to mentor you, like Lionblaze, or Bramblestar himself?!" Greystripe said, flicking his tail to where the two toms were talking urgently beneath the High Ledge.

"No." Maplekit replied firmly. "If I got one of them, I might be expected to be amazing at everything, or they would never have time for me because of their duties. And anyway, any cat would be proud to say you had mentored them." She mewed, realizing that she suddenly sounded less kit-like.

"Thank you!" Greystripe purred, before leaving to join the Sun-High patrol.

Maplekit sighed and padded over to a shaded corner of camp. She was tired, and she knew she wouldn't get any sleep inside the nursery. Ever since she had beaten Seedpaw, the apprentices had steered clear of her and her den-mates practically worshipped the ground she stood on. Except Sunkit, of course, who just rolled her eyes haughtily and stalked off.

Closing her eyes, Maplekit soon drifted off to sleep.

Her eyes fluttered open to see a field. It was a field that she remembered clearly, but she had never set paw on it. It was the field that separated the Dark Forest and Starclan. She could see the very stop that she sat every day for moons, watching, waiting, hoping that one day she would leave the Dark Forest behind.

To her right she saw some woods, but they were filled with light, coming down through the canopy and dappling the forest floor.

It was an easy choice as to which way to turn. Maplekit took a step to the right, but stopped when she felt something different about her. For over five moons, Maplekit had spent her time feeling small and weaker than ever and now she felt tall, muscular and strong.

She raced away, over the lush, green grass of the moors, until she reached the woods of Starclan. She looked back, not to say goodbye to the Dark Forest, or to look back in longing. She looked back to see whether it really was gone. Her heart tat used to be so cold and lonely, now filled with joy to see that the hills she had once been standing on, now hid that terrible place from view.

With a deep breath, Maplekit padded into the forest. Bird song was everywhere, filling the forest with pretty sounds. The ground was soft under paw, but not damp or boggy like the Dark Forest was. The Dark Forest was actually intended to be dry, until the ground ran red with the blood of cats.

Maplekit shook those thoughts from her mind and instead, sat at the edge of a pond. The fish swam around slowly, their starry scales glistening in the sun. All around her flowers of different types littered the floor, filling the air with a sweet, yet not overpowering scent.

Streams ran along the banks in almost every direction, and the sound of running water added itself to the birdsong.

Maplekit looked down at herself in the water. She no longer looked like a kit, but like a great warrior. The warrior she used to be before Appledusk came along.

Her fur was soft and silky, the tortoiseshell pattern outlining her muscles and shimmering softly with stars. Wait, _stars_? Was she dead? Had Starclan accepted her? What was going on? Looking more closely at her reflection, she saw that her piercing amber eyes glowed like those of the noble Starclan warriors, but she was not faded. _So I'm not dead. Good. _

Her thoughts were interrupted by a deep, masculine mew. She turned, almost expecting to see Tigerstar. But instead, she saw someone who, in her eyes, was even worse.

"What do you want, Appledusk?" She asked, as calmly as she could. The tom took a step forwards. A smirk played on his lips.

"Nothing, my dear Mapleshade. I'm just here to introduce you to where you will end up if you stick to the prophecy."

"The Prophecy? Don't be ridiculous! Prophecies are for medicine cats!" Maplekit (or was she Mapleshade?) spat. "And any way, why do you care? You never cared about me before, so why bother now?"

Appledusk stopped smirking immediately.

"Who said I stopped caring about you? I'm practically your mate!"

"My _mate_?!" Mapleshade snorted in laughter. "My mate? Are you mad? You never were my mate!"

Mapleshade stopped laughing and turned serious.

"But honestly Appledusk, you chose you mate a long time ago. A Riverclan she-cat, I recall. Hmmm, let me think… How would I know that…? Oh yes! I remember! She was there when my kits drowned and you fish-faces kicked me out. Oh, and there is the fact that she _was licking your face_ and she was _pregnant _whilst I stood there_, soaked_ and _heartbroken_, and what did you do? You _wrap your tail around her and act like you never met me!" _Mapleshade had lost her cool by this point, and had pinned Appledusk down with one paw.

She wasn't Maplekit and more. She wasn't even Mapleshade. She didn't know who she was. All she knew was that the cat at her paws betrayed her. Humiliated her. Watched her kits die. And now she had him trapped.

She raised her paw, ready to strike down. Appledusk gave a shriek of terror and began pleading.

"Please, no! I love you! Don't do it! I've always loved you! I didn't know it then! I thought you had betrayed me and dropped our kits in the river! I know you didn't do that now. I tried to let Starclan let you in but it was too late! Please!" Appledusk didn't break his gaze from hers. But everything he said then meant nothing. He didn't love her. She was certain of that.

"Mapleshade! I was the one who asked for you to get a second chance! Our kits and I!" She froze. Looking into his eyes, she could see that he wasn't lying. She sheathed her claws but brought her paw down hard on Appledusk's face.

She heard a_ thud_ as her paw connected with his jaw and a screech of surprise and pain from Appledusk.

"Prove it." She said simply. Apple dusk nodded quickly, and scurried off as soon as Mapleshade let him up. She was heaving for breath, everything Appledusk told her whirring around in her head. She wanted s badly for everything he told her to be true. That he really did love her, that he really was there for her.

Mapleshade gave up trying to suppress her tears, and crouched down, letting the tears fall.

Suddenly, a tail tip hesitantly touched her shoulder. She looked up and saw Appledusk, standing in front of her, with two kits. _Her kits_.

The two kits, one golden brown like his father, and the other tortoiseshell like her mother, charged at her and pushed themselves into her chest fur. She purred so loudly she was sure they could hear her back in Thunderclan, but she didn't care. Appledusk padded up to her and hesitantly sat down next to her. Foxkit, the golden-brown tom looked up.

"Mama!" He squeaked happily. "Daddy said we would meet you one day! He promised us you would visit!"

The she-kit butted in.

"Daddy said if we wanted to see you again, we had to ask the great leaders of Starclan! And we did!"

When she mewed those works, Mapleshade knew what Appledusk had said was true. She looked up at him, frowning slightly.

"Why wait so long?" She murmured, watching her kits curl up into her forepaws and fall asleep.

"It took a long time to convince them all that you deserved to come to Starclan. And even then, they said they had to test you to see if you really could come back. So they sent you back. The things you feel down there in Thunderclan is slightly different to what you feel up here. When you die, there will be two new cats introduced to Starclan. The first will be the cat who is Maplekit right now, asleep in camp. The second will be you."

"But, I am Maplekit, aren't I?" Mapleshade asked.

"It will be clearer soon." Appledusk purred. He then hung his head. "I'm sorry about taking a mate in Riverclan. I just… I had to prove my loyalty to them, and Silverfrost had seen you and I meeting once, so to keep her quiet I asked her to be my mate. I never expected her to become pregnant! I don't even know how it happened. When she gave birth, the kits looked more like my brother than me, so my guess is I'm not even their real father…"

Mapleshade sighed. She felt so… bored. All she had thought about for moons was Appledusk and this mystery she-cat who was having his kits. Now that everything was out in the open… Her mind was blank.

Appledusk pressed against her, purring softly. She licked his head and purred too. She finally had her family back. No ifs. No buts. She had her family back.

Mapleshade felt herself slipping away, waking up. _But I don't want to wake up_! Her mind yowled. Before the world went blurry, Mapleshade felt Appledusk lick her check before murmuring in her ear.

"I love you Mapleshade. Always have and always will."

**YAY! Mapleshade's love life isn't a total wreck anymore! **_**And**_**, we all now know why Mapleshade was**_** really**_** given a new life. So that she could rejoin Appledusk!**

**I was planning on having Appledusk actually not love her, but then I gave up and changed it to MaplexApple because I felt really mean. I know, bad writing skills. But there you go. It's TEACHER TRAINING DAY! I might post another chapter this afternoon, aren't you all lucky? **_**Thank you for all the reviews everyone! **_

**And now…. REVIEWS!**

**Splinterclaw: Thank you! I do try.**

**Sunnypelt: XD I just noticed that. When I saw your story, it was just underneath this one on the list of recently updated warrior cats stories! And you're welcome, I like reviewing stories!**

**Spottedleafalways11: Yeah, that would be an awkward situation, wouldn't it? And as for Riverclan warriors, I don't promise anything. MWA HA HA *Cough cough hack hack cough***

**PokemonThatEatsCats2: Very true. You must be a wise one. O.o**


	7. I'm An Apprentice!

**Another chapter! YAY!**

"Hush darlings, sit still! You're ruining your fur and I haven't even finished yet!" Dovefeather scolded her exited kits, who were bounding around her in excitement. All except Maplekit, who sat quietly as her mother fussed over her. She had decided that she could drop the kit-act now that she was about to become an apprentice.

Over by the nursery, Daisy fussed over her kits. Because the two litters had been born so close together, it was decided that they would all become apprentices together.

Maplekit was bursting with excitement. She would finally be allowed out of camp! She wondered who was going to get as mentor. Quite a few of the younger warriors had been hinting that they were getting apprentices, and even though none of the other kits seemed bothered about who they got, Maplekit was sure she wanted an experienced mentor who could teach her about Thunderclan life properly.

Finally, it was time for the ceremony. Maplekit breathed a sigh of relief as her siblings became still with nerves at being the centre of attention. Snowkit's litter went first, since they were born first. Bramblestar took a deep breath and began to speak.

"Snowkit, you have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Snowpaw. Your mentor will be Toadleap. Sunkit, you will be known as Sunpaw and your mentor will be Berrynose. Treekit, you will be known as Treepaw and your mentor will be Lionblaze. Ravenkit, you will be known as Ravenpaw and your mentor will be Greystripe!"

Maplekit felt envy crawl up her pelt as she watched Ravenkit, now Ravenpaw, touch noses with Greystripe. _I wanted him!_ She thought angrily. She calmed herself down. _No need to get worked up_, she told herself_, you will get a good mentor, it'll be OK._

"Dapplekit, please step forwards. You have reached the age of six moons, and it is time you were apprenticed. Until you earn your warrior name, you will be known as Dapplepaw. Your mentor will be Squirrelflight. Thornkit, you will be known as Thornpaw and your mentor will be Crowfeather. Maplekit, from this day onwards you will be known as Maplepaw, your mentor will be Silverstream!"

_What?_ Her mind practically shrieked as she padded up to Silverstream and touched noses. _But… She's __**Crookedstar's daughter**__! I basically ruined his life!_

As the clan chanted their new names, Maplepaw began to feel surer of herself. She grinned at her new mentor. This was her new life. She wasn't going to let it get ruined by a choice of mentor.

"It's the gathering in a few days, so you might get to go to that." Silverstream's soft voice brought her back to reality.

"Yeah, that would be great!" Came a voice from beside her. Maplepaw turned to see Ravenpaw stood beside her, his chest puffed out. She hadn't realised how tall he had grown in the past moon. They were now roughly the same height, even though he looked skinny next to her because of her muscular frame.

"Isn't it great?" Ravenpaw purred. "Greystripe and Silverstream are mates, so we'll get to train together!"

Maplepaw had to clamp her jaws shut so that her bottom one didn't drop in dismay. _Not Ravenpaw! He's so arrogant! He's only nice if he thinks he can get a compliment out of you! _Maplepaw thought, trying not to show her distress. Instead, she simply nodded and smiled, before turning back to Silverstream. The older she-cat's whiskers were twitching, and her eyes glimmered in amusement.

Greystripe's yowl saved Maplepaw from any further embarrassment, but she still couldn't control the heat burning at her ear tips.

"Shall we check the boarders?" Silverstream asked, changing the subject of thought.

"Yes please!" Maplepaw mewed, eager to escape the hustle of camp.

Once they stepped out of the camp, Maplepaw's world filled with new scents. Appledusk had been right about how her feelings changed. Down here she was an apprentice, exited about everything. When she thought of Appledusk now she thought about him with slight affection. In her dream, she had felt like an adult she-cat would towards her mate. She had loved him, but now he meant very little to her. It was confusing, but it made sense in a way.

Snapped out of her thoughts by bird song, she padded after Silverstream.

Later on, Maplepaw returned back to camp tired and sore. No matter how much muscle she had built up, she was no match for the stamina it took to patrol each border. Not yet, anyway.

When she reached the apprentices den, Maplepaw stopped. If she went in now, she would either be smothered by Ravenpaw or mocked by Seedpaw and Sunpaw.

She padded over to the fresh kill pile first, choosing a vole and sitting just outside the apprentice den. She didn't eat it until she was joined by Dapplepaw and Snowpaw. When she finally bit into the vole, it was cold and stringy. Leaf-bare was starting to get a grip on the prey, clearly.

"So how did it go?" She asked her den-mates.

"Great!" Dapplepaw replied happily. "Squirrelflight showed me a hunter's crouch, and when Snowpaw tried it, he tripped over his own paws and fell on his face!"

"I didn't trip over my own paws! I just… attacked the ground…?" He offered hopefully.

"As if!" A snort came from behind them and they turned to see Ravenpaw and Treepaw carrying their prey over. Thornpaw came too, but Sunpaw was nowhere to be seen.

"Shut up mouse brain!" Snapped Maplepaw as Ravenpaw flopped down next to her. He winced visibly and she suddenly felt bad. She whispered softly to him. "Sorry, but you weren't being very nice!"

"It's ok." Ravenpaw sighed. Maplepaw turned her attention to Treepaw. She didn't speak much with the Tabby she-cat, and she wanted to become friends.

"Treepaw, you must feel great, you got Lionblaze as a mentor! Bramblestar must see something good in you!" She purred.

"He is a good mentor, but he seems lost half the time, thinking about his own things. I think you guys will be warriors before me at this rate!" Treepaw grunted.

"No way! You will be a warrior at the same time as the rest of us, don't worry." Thornpaw reassured her.

When the apprentices had finished, Maplepaw lead them into the den. She chose a nest close to the middle. Luckily, the older Snow paw had been made a warrior a few days earlier, for fighting a dog that was attacking Blossomfall. He was named Snowflight, so now there was only one Snowpaw in Thunderclan, to make life easier.

The next day, Maplepaw was awoken buy exited mews and purrs from the others. Dapplepaw was sitting wide eyed and bushy-tailed in the centre of a circle of excited apprentices.

"So who did you say was going to the gathering?" She heard Snowpaw mew. _The Gathering!_ Maplepaw though excitedly. _Maybe I'm going!_

She padded over to the group of excited cats, her eyes still blurry and her fur still ruffled from sleep.

"Snowpaw, Lillypaw, Dewpaw, Maplepaw and I are going, and obviously there will be other warriors coming too!" Dapplepaw purred. Maple paw was purring happily when she saw Ravenpaw looking crestfallen.

"I'll tell you all about it when we get back." She murmured to him, sitting down beside him. "And since we went this time, you're bound to go next time."

"Thanks Maplepaw!" Ravenpaw purred, leaning into lick her ear. She quickly ducked, pretending to sneeze.

"Oh, sorry Ravenpaw! Looks like I've got a chill! I'll go speak to Jayfeather about it!" Maplepaw hurried outside, leaving a surprised Ravenpaw on his own again. _Smooth… Now he thinks I'm mad… Or infectious… Or maybe… WAIT. Why should I care?_ Maplepaw thought, puzzling over the matter.

"Maplepaw!" Silverstream's voice echoed around the camp. She hurried over to Silverstream, and immediately asked,

"Am I really going to the Gathering?!"

"Yes you are, now hurry along, Greystripe is waiting for us. He and Ravenpaw will be hunting with us today." Silverstream called for Ravenpaw, and she, Maplepaw and Ravenpaw all padded into the forest.

Once they reached Greystripe, Ravenpaw rushed over to his mentor. Maplepaw had been talking to him all the way there, and no matter how many times Silverstream told him to be quiet, or else he would scare off all the prey, Ravenpaw had blabbered on.

"OK, both of you show me your best hunter's crouch." Greystripe instructed. Maplepaw instantly dropped down into the crouch. It was so natural for her, she practically flowed into position. Greystripe and Silverstream could find no fault.

"Where did you learn that?" Silverstream asked, searching Maplepaw's gaze.

"I watched the apprentices and warriors in camp and then tried it out. Ashfur also helped me." That was partly true. She just missed off the fact that she used to be a respected member of Thunderclan back in the old forest.

"Good Ravenpaw, just keep you tail still and don't let it drag. You will alert all the prey of your presence if it does that.

Ravenpaw soon adjusted his position and Greystripe allowed them to sit up.

"Now, Ravenpaw, tell me what you should do when stalking a mouse. Is there anything you should remember in particular?" Greystripe and Silverstream sat side by side, quizzing the apprentices on what they already knew.

"Keep your pawsteps light?" Ravenpaw suggested.

"Good, can you tell me why, Maplepaw?"

"Because the mice can feel the vibrations of your paws." She answered confidently.

"Good, both voles and mice feel the vibrations of your paws. Squirrels sometimes can, too. Maplepaw, what speed do you go at to hunt a bird?" Greystripe praised the both before turning to her.

"Fast and light?"

"Good. Now, I want both of you to hunt at least one piece of prey each. Come back when you catch something. If you don't catch anything and it reaches Sun-high, meet us back here anyway. Now, split up and hunt! Remember, it is most difficult to hunt in leaf-bare!" Greystripe reminded them.

Ravenpaw ran off to the left, crashing through the undergrowth. Maplepaw shook her head and headed off in the opposite direction.

The ground was cold and hard beneath her paws. They itched to run but Maplepaw knew that it would scare away any prey. She decided to head towards the Riverclan border, as she knew that the border with Shadowclan wasn't very stable at the moment. Apparently a patrol of Thunderclan warriors were attacked by Shadowclan cats, even though the Thunderclan warriors had been on their side of the territory.

When she next tasted the air, Maplepaw decided she was close enough to the Riverclan border. The air was tainted with their fishy scent, and if she got to close it could overpower the prey scent.

Picking up the scent of a vole, (one she knew well from the fresh kill pile) Maplepaw began to pad forwards very slowly. Her paws barely touched the ground as she trod as lightly as possible though the dense undergrowth. Suddenly, she spotted the short, stumpy tail of a vole scuffling through the leaves.

Creeping forwards, lightly and carefully, Maplepaw came within a tail-length of the vole. _Not yet. Just a moment longer… Now!_ Maplepaw leapt from her hiding place and landed with one paw crushing the vole's neck and the other three steadying her. Or at least, her paws were trying to.

The ground beneath her paws was slippery, and try as she might to dig her thorn-sharp claws in, she couldn't get a grip. Her claws still embedded in the vole's back, Maplepaw began to skid down a slope. She realised in horror that she was heading straight towards the frozen river.

Slipping and sliding, Maplepaw skidded down the steep slope, bumping into a rock which threw her onto her side. Sliding the rest of the way down in that ungraceful manner, Maplepaw landed with a _thump_ on the river's edge.

Her ear pressed against the ice the way it was, she could hear the rushing of water beneath the layer of ice, and the river suddenly didn't seem quite so frozen any more. Scrambling to her paws, Maplepaw began to un-hook the limp creature off her claws. It was a messy kill, and she felt ashamed, almost.

_It could have been worse_, she specialised. _At least no Riverclanner saw me._ But she spoke too soon.

"Hey, you! What are you doing on Riverclan territory?" Came a territorial mew from across the river. Turning around slowly, Maplepaw locked eyes with the speaker.

"I'm not on your territory! Even a kit knows that the river is the border between our clans!" She replied calmly, her scornful remark turning out more like a hiss.

The speaker grunted and sat down, drawing a paw lazily over his ear.

"Ok, if you say so, oh great leader." He teased lightly.

Maplepaw simply looked the tom over distastefully. He was a young cat, most likely an apprentice like herself. He had a black muzzle, which turned into a blaze, leading over the back of his head and down his back, all the way to the tip of his tail. Black tabby stripes streaked his otherwise dark grey pelt.

"I'm not your leader." She finally replied. Holding her head aloft, she called over her shoulder as she padded away, "Maybe I'll see you at the Gathering. I hope I don't. For your sake and mine."

And with that, she disappeared into the bushes with a flick of her long, bushy tail.

Once out of view, Maplepaw hurriedly cleaned the vole, lapping the blood and ice off the creature's back. _It'll have to do. It's nearly sun-high, maybe there is still time to catch something else… _

Burying the vole under some leaves, she eventually found the scent of a bird. She didn't know what type, but she padded forwards, lightly and quickly, until the scent became stronger. Dropping into a crouch, she slipped forwards through the trees, spotting the black body of a male black bird.

It was big but skinny. _Still good enough to feed two or three warriors!_ She thought hopefully.

Steadying herself with her tail, she quickly and lightly slipped through the trees, under bushes and over rocks before finding a good place near the bird. It had found a worm, which it was currently yanking out of the ground. She didn't have long to make her move.

Checking over her position one final time (and checking the ground the bird stood on) she leapt out of the ferns she had hidden in and crossed the clearing in a few bounds. The bird dropped the worm and was about to take off when Maplepaw made one, final, impressive leap before pouncing onto the bird. Before it could cry out an alarm, she snapped its neck.

Picking up the vole on the way back, she padded into the clearing where Silverstream, Greystripe and Ravenpaw where waiting.

"Sorry I took so long!" She panted. "I had an incident whilst trying to catch the vole, and I slipped, and it sort off messed up the catch. But I could eat it instead and the others can have the black bird."

"It's OK Maplepaw, just be more careful next time. That black bird is an impressive catch!" Silverstream praised.

On the way back to camp, Ravenpaw padded next to her the whole time, trying to speak to her through the robin he was carrying. When they got to camp, Maplepaw immediately took the bird to the Queens. Sky was due to kit any day now, and Leafpool had moved in, expecting Crowfeather's kits.

When she came in, the queens thanked her graciously, before tucking into the bird.

Back outside, she and Ravenpaw were the only apprentices in camp. Great.

Ravenpaw came and sat next to her, carrying her vole and a mouse. Dropping the vole at her paws, he dipped his head to start eating them mouse but stopped.

"Do you want the mouse instead? That vole looks a bit thin." He offered. Maplepaw, surprised, politely declined.

"No, it's ok, I'll eat it."

As they ate, they began to chat. At first it was a bit awkward, be soon everything smoothed out and Maplepaw was laughing at almost everything he said. She didn't even notice Sunpaw come over.

"Ravenpaw? Why are you talking with Maplepaw? I thought you didn't like her!" Sunpaw sneered.

"I do like her! She's my friend! If she isn't your friend then deal with it!" Ravenpaw replied angrily.

"Hey hey hey, calm down guys! Sunpaw, Ravenpaw and I can talk if he and I want to, and Ravenpaw, it's ok, we are friends, it doesn't matter what Sunpaw says." Ravenpaw and Sunpaw both grunted, and Sunpaw stormed into the apprentice den. Bramblestar called the cats who were going to the gathering to, well, gather around him. Saying a quick good bye to Ravenpaw, she joined Silverstream and the other apprentices and mentors beside their leader.

When they started out, she ran beside Silverstream, keeping pace with the pretty she-cat, their breath billowing out into white vapour-like clouds.

Eventually, she began to tire, but luckily they were nearly there. She could see the log that let the cats onto the island. When they reached it, the Thunderclan warriors went one by one over it, balancing carefully to the other side.

When it reached Maplepaw's turn, the problems started.

**Yay! I updated, and Maplepaw's an apprentice, and she's going to a gathering! YAY! You guys are amazing at reviewing, 20 reviews already?! You amaze me! And so, without further adue (I know, wrong spelling), REVIEWS!**

**EradrinSkyLeaf: CUTENESS IS AMAZING!**

**PokemonThatEatsCats2: Sort of. When Maplepaw dies (which she will have to eventually), Mapleshade's spirit will part from Maplepaw's! Confusing, no?**

**Birdflame: Hmmm… You could say that…**

**Splinterclaw: Thank you!**

**Thank you for all your kind reviews! Review if you want to, and thanks!**

**May Mapleshade Be Loved Again~**


	8. Blackstar's Promise

**Thanks for all the reviews, favourites and follows everyone! Last Chapter was our longest yet! Over 3000 words! Oh, and I don't own Warriors. Congrats to anyone who had guessed that by now!**

Maplepaw looked suspiciously at the log. It wasn't that it didn't look sturdy, it was just that at her end it was thickly layered with bark, and on the other it was smooth and shiny.

She was about to step onto the log that got her to the gathering island, and the cats behind her were growing impatient. Taking a deep breath, Maplepaw took hole of the bark in her claws and hauled herself up.

All was going well so far! Next, she placed her paws carefully, one after the other, padding uncertainly across the log.

Now came the tricky bit. The log was divided into two parts. One half, covered in thick, spongy bark and the other stripped of these useful paw holds and left bare and slippery. Maplepaw was now passing onto the slippery part.

Digging in her claws as deep as she could, Maplepaw slowly shimmied across the log. All seemed to be going fine, so Maplepaw relaxed slightly and loosened her aching claws. As she unstuck the final batch of claws on her fourth step, the log seemed to suddenly disappear.

Her whole world seemed to turn upside down, and for a moment Maplepaw didn't know which way was up. Her paws flailed and she dug them into the first thing they hit. Some-cat let out a cry of pain and Maplepaw instantly retracted her claws.

The next thing she hit was a branch like thing. Digging in her claws, she slowly peeled open her eyes, which she had closed tightly during her fall. She saw she had landed on a branch growing off the tree-trunk and was clinging on, mouse lengths away from the water.

Climbing up onto the bank, Maplepaw saw that she had dug her paws into Silverstream's fur. Luckily, she hadn't drawn blood, but it must have hurt, having claws yanking at your fur.

Once she had apologised to Silverstream, she was lead out onto the main part of the island. Even in the old forest, she never remembered seeing so many cats in one place! Cat scent filled the night air, and mews of warriors greeting broke the usually silent night.

Silverstream guided her through the mass of cats until they reached a group of Riverclan warriors. 

"Hey!" Silverstream called, getting the others attention.

"Silverstream!" A grey she-cat with bright blue eyes mewed happily. She was sitting with two other cats. One was a brown and white tom that Maplepaw recognised from somewhere. The other was a brown tabby she-cat.

"Hello Mistystar! How are you?" Silverstream sat down next to the great leader, and it took Maplepaw a moment to remember that they most likely were friends when Silverstream lived in Riverclan.

"All is well. So, how are things in Thunderclan? I heard that Leafpool is expecting kits-" Maplepaw stopped listening as the three she-cats huddled together more closely and began talking about kits and clans. She was too busy looking at the brown and white tom in front of her.

He too seemed to recognise her, but unlike her, he seemed terrified.

"Erm, Silverstream, who is this?" He asked, struggling to keep the shudder out of his voice. She knew she had met him before, but _where_?

"Oh, that's Maplepaw, my apprentice! This is her first gathering; will you show her over to the apprentices please? Thanks!" Silverstream replied, before turning back to Mistystar.

The tom simply nodded and turned, flicking his tail for her to follow. They stopped at the edge of the clearing and he turned to her. His deep blue eyes were so wide, you could see the whites. She remembered this face. This look of utter terror the tom was giving her.

"So, Harespring, long time no see?" Maplepaw mewed coolly. Harespring nearly clawed her there and then.

"Mapleshade?! What are _you_ doing _here_? Is the Dark Forest rising again? I'm not joining _you,_ if that's what you want." Harespring hissed at her.

"My name is Maplepaw. And I am here by Starclan's wishes. I wouldn't _dream _of asking you to join the Dark Forest. I'm never going back there!" Maplepaw replied smoothly, a smirk playing on her lips.

Harespring narrowed his eyes but didn't comment. He wouldn't stand against Starclan. He simply flicked his ears in the direction of a group of apprentices. Dipping her head, Maplepaw left him and padded over.

"Hey guys, what's going on?" Maplepaw called to her clan mates. All the apprentices there turned to look at her, but she didn't mind. Sitting next to Dapplepaw, she looked at them all. "I'm Maplepaw, Dapplepaw's sister." She mewed.

"Oh, Ok, I'm Hootpaw and this is Oatpaw." A dark grey tom spoke, pointing to a pale brown tabby tom. They were from Windclan; Maplepaw could tell by their scent.

"I'm Perchpaw," began a grey-and-white she-cat in a soft voice. "And he's Darkpaw." The Apprentice was pointing to a dark grey tom with a black muzzle which turned into a blaze, running down his back all the way to his tail tip. Black tabby markings showed on his face, legs and flanks. A smirk was plastered on his face as her looked at Maplepaw, but he said nothing.

As the apprentices started chatting again, Maplepaw padded up to the smug tom.

"Have you leant were the borders are yet?" Maplepaw asked sweetly, his smirk vanishing.

"I was just trying to be a good apprentice," he said sulkily. "I was just testing out whether I could scare away a Thunderclan cat! And who knows? Maybe you were planning on crossing the border!"

Maplepaw just snorted.

"Why would I? I have what I need in the forest, thanks, I don't eat fish."

"Fine, but don't complain to me when you run out of squirrels!"

"If we run out of squirrels, we eat mice, voles, birds and other forest creatures."

"Well if we run out of fish…"

"You come to us for help."

"No we don't"

"Yes, you do."

Darkpaw just huffed and turned away. Maplepaw laughed.

"Where is Shadowclan?" Dapplepaw asked the, sitting down next to her. Maplepaw couldn't help but notice how the toms, especially Snowpaw and Darkpaw, were looking at her.

"I don't know. I wonder if the leaders will start the gathering without them." Darkpaw answered. His eyes were all soft and caring. Ugh. Maplepaw wasn't usually jealous of her sister's beauty, but sometimes she withed someone looked at her like that. Some one thought that she was pretty. Not even Ravenpaw, who seemed to want to be stuck to her side, still looked at Dapplepaw doe-eyed.

_Beauty doesn't matter. No one should love you just for your looks!_ She scolded herself. But it wasn't very comforting to think that she could end up grow old and spending her days in the elders den without having a mate to talk to.

"Maplepaw? Are you there?" A voice dragged her away from her thoughts.

"Huh?" Maplepaw looked up, startled.

"Oh good, I thought you were angry at me! You were looking at the ground as if it had stolen a vole from beneath you paws!" Dapplepaw's sigh of relief made her feel guilty. Why did she have to be jealous of her? She was so nice and caring, she deserved better than that.

"No, it is ok, I was just thinking." Maplepaw reassured her.

Suddenly, a hush came over the clans as Shadowclan scent wafted from the direction of the tree trunk. Shadowclan warriors milled onto the island, streaming in from the entrance. Two apprentices from Shadowclan came to sit with them, but didn't get closer than a fox length.

"Hey!" Maplepaw called to the apprentices. "We don't bite!"

"Come on Grasspaw." The dark brown tabby tom huffed. His fur spiked out in different directions, and his claws looked thorn sharp; he couldn't keep them sheathed because the claw tips poked out the paw pads!

A she cat that looked just like him, except that she was a paler brown and that her fur was smooth, followed him over to them.

Maplepaw decided to break the awkward silence, but before she could speak, Bramblestar's yowl intervened.

"Cats of all clans! Onestar wishes to speak first."

The brown tabby leader stepped forwards. His eyes glimmered in the moonlight as he spoke.

"Harespring is our deputy now, and we have four new apprentices! Hootpaw, Oatpaw, Slightpaw and Featherpaw! Hootpaw and Oatpaw are with us here today! That is all." As Onestar stepped back, Mistystar stepped forwards. She signalled with her tail for the cheering to stop.

"Darkpaw and Perchpaw are here tonight; their first gathering as apprentices." More cheers greeted them, all the clans chanting.

Now Bramblestar stepped forwards.

"We too have new apprentices! Maplepaw, Dapplepaw and Snowpaw are with us tonight. Ravenpaw, Sunpaw, Treepaw and Thornpaw are back guarding the camp. Sky is due to have her kits anytime now and Leafpool is moving into the nursery with Crowfeather's kits." He finished off his speech, and the clans cheered again.

Except, almost all the clans were cheering. Windclan were slightly hesitant to cheer for their former warrior, and Shadowclan stayed completely silent.

_How rude!_ Maplepaw thought indignantly.

Blackstar was next to step forward. His face was grim and unmoving. When he spoke, everyone went quiet.

"Thunderclan has stolen prey from us! And I _promise_ that justice will be brought! " He yowled. The silence that had been there was broken by protests.

Cries of "No we didn't!" and "You made that up!" filled the night air, and Maplepaw was hissing in indignation. She was about to yowl something that probably would have to be censored in the Warriors world, when Bramblestar stepped forwards.

"We have done no such thing! Do you have proof?"

"Yes! My patrols saw Thunderclan cats on our land, carrying prey. We also found Thunderclan stench on some of our toads, left on our boarder!"

"My clan has not stepped a paw on your land! We wouldn't dream of eating toads either! This gathering is over!" Bramblestar announced, and he leapt down from the branch he was on, landing nimbly. "Thunderclan, to me!" He called. Maplepaw and the others raced over to him, forming a tight circle around him, the deputy and the elders.

Maplepaw followed the rest of her clan, stopping only to look back. She could feel someone watching her every move. Looking around, she locked gazes with the Shadowclan apprentice from earlier. She snarled at him before whipping around and followed the rest of her clan over the log and disappearing into the forest.

**Hello everyone! It's Maple! So, I hoped you all liked this gathering chapter. ****You guys are out doing yourselves with reviews! 25 reviews already!****Wow! Thank you for all the support, and now… REVIEWS!**

**Indi (Guest): Thank you! That's how I found out about her too! I spent ages looking for a re-incarnated Mapleshade story, and I know there are some good ones. There is one about Mapleshade, Darkstripe and Thistleclaw all getting a second chance, but I can't remember its name off the top of my head… **

**splinterclaw: Thank you.**

**Birdflame: This is in the new territories, around the time of Bramblestar's Storm. And I'm allergic to cheese…**

**Spottedleafalways11: Thank you! I'm glad that reading this makes you happy! The Riverclan apprentice should be harmless for the great Mapleshade, right? MWA HA HA.**

**Guest: Thank you! Awesome is my favourite word! XD**

**Thank you all for the amazing reviews! Any guests, I will try and check my e-mail more regularly, so that I can accept your comments ect. Review if you feel like it, but no being mean people. O.o**


	9. Glowing Yellow Eyes

Maplepaw woke the next day, her paws sore and her vision slightly blurred. Amazingly, she had been able to stay up long enough to tell Ravenpaw about the gathering _in detail_ and groom her fur before finally drifting off to sleep. Of course, she missed out her conversation with Harespring.

"Come on Maplepaw, border patrol." Ravenpaw was nudging her urgently. "Lionblaze and Silverstream are waiting for us."

"What about Greystripe?" Maplepaw murmured, blinking the sleep from her eyes and looking around.

"He is out helping a hunting patrol or something." Ravenpaw led her outside, a cold wind buffeting Maplepaw's long fur.

Without bothering to even shake the moss from her pelt, Maplepaw ran over to the patrol and fell in line behind Lionblaze as they plodded up the slope.

"Where are we going?"

"To the Shadowclan border."

The simple exchange between apprentice and mentor still sent chills down her spine. Only last night Thunderclan had been accused of stealing prey from Shadowclan.

As Maplepaw became more awake, she kept a look out for prey. It would be great to be able to give a nice squirrel or a black bird to the queens. Sky was practically bursting; her kits were due any time now. Bramblestar visited her at every chance he got.

They reached the Shadowclan border without a problem, but Maplepaw still felt uneasy. What if a patrol of Shadowclan warriors attacked now? New-leaf was definitely on its way, but it was still no time for a battle.

While the others marked the border, Maplepaw paced back and forth, staring out onto the boggy marshes of Shadowclan. Suddenly, she saw a flash of yellow in the bushes. Narrowing her eyes, she glared at the place she had last seen the yellow thing.

Was it a pair of eyes? Shadowclan stench _was_ in the air. Then she saw them again, gleaming in the dark. Two eyes, yellow and glowing, shone from the bushes on the Shadowclan side of the border. Before she could say anything to Silverstream, the eyes disappeared just as soon as they had appeared.

"Maplepaw, come on, we are going back to camp!" Silverstream mewed.

"Can I stay here a bit longer? I want to hunt a bit before coming back to camp."Silverstream dipped her head in agreement and padded back into the bushes.

Maplepaw scanned the Shadowclan border. She had seen them, the eyes. They really had been there, glaring at her though the dark.

She sat there, scanning the border until at least Sun-high, but nothing happened. She was about to turn back when she heard a rustle in the bushes. Whipping around to face the border, Maplepaw watched as a Dark brown tabby tom stepped out of the bushes. His fur spiked out in all directions, and his piercing yellow eyes shone like stars.

It was that Shadowclan apprentice from the gathering!

"Why were you watching my patrol?" She called to him, an edge to her mew.

"It was awfully close to my border, that's why!" The apprentice countered his tail lashing.

"Well we didn't actually set a paw over the border, so you are just being paranoid."

"No I'm not!"

"Yes you are!"

"Shut up."

"Make me." Maplepaw had had enough of this annoying apprentice. Her eyes narrowed and she smirked dangerously. "Is the mighty Shadowclan warrior too scared?"

Thant did it. With a yowl, the tabby apprentice charged towards the border. But Maplepaw just sat there, quietly washing her paw. She knew he wouldn't get further than a few paces before-

"Spikepaw! What are you doing?" An angry mew stopped the tom in his tracks. "I come along with my patrol and I find you attacking someone?"

The speaker was a tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes. _Tawnypelt? _Maplepaw guessed.

"Sorry Tawnypelt…" Spikepaw murmured, padding up to the wise she-cat. The rest of the patrol watched silently as Tawnypelt whispered something to him before leading them away. Just before he turned to follow the group, Spikepaw turned back to Maplepaw.

"See you soon kitty-pet-lover." He sneered as he raced away.

_How dare he! _Maplepaw thought angrily. However, she still felt pleased with herself for scenting the patrol.

Deciding that she should catch some prey before going back to camp, Maplepaw padded further down the Shadowclan border. Scenting the air, Maplepaw scented a small mammal not far from her position. Pinpointing her prey, she saw a shrew nibbling at a seed beneath a tall pine tree.

Dropping into a hunters crouch, she quickly assessed her position and strategy. _The wind is blowing in my direction, so the shrew can't smell me. I have to be quick, because it is nearly finished with the seed and the wind feels like it's about to turn. I'm facing its hindquarters so it can't see me. I should use a careful, light stalking technique or else to shrew will feel the vibrations in the ground. _

Taking only a few moments more, Maplepaw crept forwards as quickly as she dared. She took light steps; not a leaf rustled. She was about to pounce when the wind direction changed and her scent wafted towards the shrew. Maplepaw sensing this leapt forwards and charged after the retreating shrew.

The shrew was agile and small but Maplepaw had size on her side, and she kept up easily. Just as the shrew was darting under a bush, Maplepaw cuffed its tiny hindquarters before finishing it off. Although the shrew was small, it was extremely plump and would be good enough to feed a warrior.

Maplepaw realised that New-Leaf must be on its way, because the ground was feeling softer under paw and the prey was getting better. But that wasn't the only thing she realised. She had also become acutely aware of the fact that while chasing the vole she had reached the border. It was less than a tail length away.

Searching the marshland beyond, she saw no signs of Shadowclan warriors so she turned back and was about to head back to camp when something stopped her. The scent of Shadowclan had suddenly grown, and not a moment later two gleaming eyes appeared in the bushes. A Shadowclan warrior with ginger fur appeared.

"Well well, what do we have here?" He sneered. At the sound of his voice, two more Shadowclanners slid out of the bushes.

"I'm on my side of the border!" Maplepaw mewed, holding her head high.

"For now yes. But in not to long that will be Shadowclan territory. Owlclaw, Scorchfur, chase her." The ginger tom addressed the two Shadowclan warriors at his side. She should have run while she had the chance.

Dropping the prey, Maplepaw gave a screech of terror and charged off. But the other two warriors had already reached her, and the brown tabby rammed into her side. Maplepaw was sent skidding across the grass, landing with a _thump_ at the base of a rock.

Scrambling to her paws, Maplepaw had just enough time to dodge out of the way when the dark grey tom lashed out at her. With a yowl, she leapt onto his back and began tearing out lumps of fur when she was gripped by the back and torn off.

Clawing madly at the air, Maplepaw tried to turn around but the tom's grip was too strong. The grey one whipped around and landed a blow the side of Maplepaw's head. It hit with a sickening _crunch_ and Maplepaw crumpled to the ground.

The world was spinning and Maplepaw could not feel her paws as she was dragged along the ground to the ginger tom. He just looked at her before motioning for his clan mates to follow him into the bushes.

_How had none of her clan mates seen her? Surely a patrol should have been there? Where were they taking her? Why did they want her? _All these thoughts swirled around Maplepaw's aching head, and the last thing she thought of, before falling unconscious, was her mother, siblings and father all looking at her as if she was a disgrace. She had been unable to stop some Shadowclan scum from taking her across the border. She was a failure.

Shouting. Chanting. Yowls of triumph. That was all she could hear. Her mind, which had stopped spinning, was now clear enough to make out the pain. Her head was aching with unimaginable pain from the blow the warrior she guessed was Scorchfur had given her.

She didn't want to open her eyes, but she also really wanted to know what was going on. Tearing open an eye, she found she was in a camp, surrounded by cats. _The Shadowclan camp! _ She thought. Maplepaw saw that there was a huge tree on which Blackstar sat, and on one of the lower branches sat the tom which had lead the cats that had attacked her sat peacefully.

_He must be Rowanclaw, the deputy. _

On either side of her sat two warriors. One was the brown tabby from earlier, while the other was also a tom, but black and grey. The cats cheering ground to a halt when Blackstar raised his tail.

"Rowanclaw lead a patrol of two other cats, Owlclaw and Scorchfur, to find us a hostage. They have succeeded in bringing us an apprentice so that we can use her to do a deal with Thunderclan. If we give back this apprentice, then Thunderclan give us the territory we need. Thunderclan cannot steal our prey and then expect us to stay quiet! Shadowclan with have its justice!" Blackstar yowled from his position on the tree.

Maplepaw wanted to yell at them all. She wanted to convince them that they were wrong, Thunderclan hadn't stolen prey. But firstly, she had no proof and secondly, who would believe her here?

She was thrown out of her thoughts when she was shoved forwards by Owlclaw. Hisses of laughter echoed around the campsite as she fell forwards and landed on her chest, muzzle buried in the ground.

As she got to her paws, Maplepaw spotted Spikepaw across the clearing. He was looking intently at her, but he wasn't laughing. He turned away as he caught her eye, but she didn't want his sympathy. If anything, ironically, she wanted one of Ravenpaw's witty comments or one of his ignorant looks from across the clearing. She didn't care if she didn't get along with him that well. Other than her siblings (who didn't really count) he was her only friend.

That is what she needed. What she never had in Thunderclan when she was Mapleshade. Back then she had cats who respected her, who were in awe of her, who hated her and one who loved her. But she never had a friend.

She began to feel light headed. Her paws seemed to blur in front of her eyes. She looked up at Blackstar, who watched from up in his tree. This wasn't the tom that she remembered thinking had promise when she was in the dark forest. Or was he? She wasn't sure about anything anymore. Her feelings, her family, who she was, or even where her paws where at that moment.

She gave Blackstar a defiant glare before hissing angrily, "You'll never get that territory you know. I don't care what you do to me, Thunderclan will keep the territory."

Finally, giving in to the pain and exhaustion, Maplepaw felt the ground come running up to meet her. As she was carried away, she pictured Ravenpaw smirking happily at her, while she defiantly watched the clan stare solemnly at her.

**Oh my Starclan! I took AGES to update! I am so sorry. And the bad bit is that I have absolutely no excuse as to why I didn't update. I just didn't. And also, I want to say sorry to a guest who has updated on basically every single chapter and I rarely ever answer any reviews of hers. (Or his…)**

**Ok, so to guest (Dark Holly Leaf) I think you're a guest? I don't know because maybe you just never log on, but any way, I didn't answer lots of your reviews because I didn't receive (or accept) them in time for the A/N of UTSTMT, so… yeah, my fault, thanks for the support!**

**Anyway, back to the real part of the A/N, thank you to everyone who has made this story part of their favourites or follows list, and thanks to you all who review! So, let us go to the… REVIEWS!**

**PokémonThatEatCats2: XD. I rather like Blackstar; I think he is just so adorable! I mean… (5 hours later) and that is why I really love Blackstar. Ehem… anyway… ehehe… NEXT REVIEW! **

**Spottedleafalways11: NOOO! Don't kill Blackstar! Maybe you will like him soon? Ehe… *Ginning awkwardly* So… That weather lately…**

**Splinterclaw: It does seem that was, doesn't it? Honestly, the standards are slipping these days, are they not? Thank you!**

**Birdflame: I haven't died, so you don't need to worry too much. And anyway, there are cheese companies that make dairy free cheese and apparently some types taste extremely similar to the real thing! And I LOVE BLACKSTAR TOO! We should start a fan club!**

**Ok everyone, thanks for the reviews! I was thinking of something else to do other than just answer reviews and I decided to do a question for you all to answer if you feel like it. I think it was because I read a different fanfic in which the author had a question for their readers. So if anyone wants to answer, just review!**

**Questions of this chapter: **

**1. I know it is too early in the story for a warrior ceremony, but what do you want the names of our apprentices to be? Choose your favourite apprentice and think of some warrior names for them… I have fun coming up with stupid ones! *Giggles about Spikepaw being called Spikebutt***

**2. Who is your favourite character in this fanfiction so far? I don't mind if you say Sunpaw.**

**So until next time, which I promise will not be in a month's time without a good excuse, Goodbye! **


	10. Blood

Maplepaw's head was reeling when she woke the next morning.

"No, Ravenpaw, I don't want to go on the dawn patrol…" She murmured sleepily. What had been a gentle (ish) nudge now became an angry shove, and Maplepaw was rocketed out of her make shift nest. She hit the wall with a thud and her eyes shot open.

The retreating figure of a brown tabby was silhouetted against the harsh morning light, and she cringed slightly when she got to her paws. She couldn't believe that all this wasn't a dream. What she also was struggling to grasp was why she hadn't stood up for herself properly yet had this been the true Mapleshade, she would have thrashed the two warriors on the Thunderclan border with ease. But now here she was, lying in a crumpled heap, defeated easily and as quietly as a mouse.

It was humiliating really. Again, she pictured her family and friend, trying to see their faces. But they were blurred, as if the image was smudged with tears. Real tears began to flow, and soon she was wrapping her tail around her body, crying quietly in the corner.

The cave she had been put in was quiet and separated from the rest of camp. However much she thought of the warm comfort of her mother, it could not stop the freezing cold and dampness of the place. The somehow humid air filled her lungs with tiny irritating water droplets and she was coughing pitifully. The only place where water didn't drip into the dull cave was under the only shrubbery there was. She was hidden under the mounds of ivy as if her life depended on it. It didn't help that she was making the only dry place there was wet with tears and blood.

Blood, it is horrible thing. Yet it gives life to everything just as easily as it can take it away. The thing that kept her alive was dripping, drop by drop, out of the wound on the side of her head. What a sight she must have made, being dragged into camp with torn fur, claws dripping with blood and her own blood dripping down her face. The only comfort to her was that any Shadowclan cat that had seen her arrive must have been scared out of their mangy pelts.

However, deep down if Maplepaw's slowly twisting soul, hope flared and her eyes began to burn with a new light. She would escape! She could return to Thunderclan and they wouldn't have to give up any territory! Of course, a patrol of Thunderclan warriors could already be on its way to retrieve her and give the territory…

She knew that she would have to act fast. And the wound at the side of her head wasn't helping. If she did escape, she would be leaving a trail of blood that even a two moon old kit could follow.

_I'm not a medicine cat! What do I use…? _ Maplepaw thought back to Thunderclan. When Ravenpaw got a thorn in his pad, Jayfeather had put a mixture of herbs on it after removing the thorn and then covered it with cob webs to hold it together. But she didn't know any herbs other that catmint and some basic ones, alongside the ones that Jayfeather would mutter about before leaving camp on a herb-hunting mission.

Maplepaw decided that she would put cobwebs on her wounds as best she could before leaving. If she could find any! The cave was not the ideal habitat for spiders in her mind, and she was dubious as she stood to look for them.

Picking her way around puddles of slimy liquid, Maplepaw searched any crevices for spider webs. Next, when she had gathered a good pawfull of cob webs, Maplepaw applied them to her head wound. Though she couldn't see what she was doing, Maplepaw was pleased with the temporary outcome. Blood no longer dripped from her head and she could now concentrate on grooming her pelt.

No, not because she wanted to look glamorous while on the run! She needed to remove the damp or drying blood and tear stains on her fur to make it harder to track her. She would roll in the nearest scented plant as soon as she was free to through any cat who followed her off track.

Minutes later, Maplepaw padded silently up to the entrance. She had already inspected the cave earlier on, and there were no other exits. At the front of the cave sat Spikepaw and Owlclaw. She grinned. The two cats she disliked were guarding her, and she was about to beat them up.

Yes, I know what you are all thinking. Maplepaw was not committing suicide. Nor was she completely confident that she would win. She hadn't eaten in days, her mouth was parched and her head was light with blood loss. But she had been feeding her hunger for revenge and also her need to escape. She really had no other choice. And she was not about to go down without a fight.

Ignoring the importance of the moment, Maplepaw did a few warm up moves as quietly as she could. She had devised a plan and was adding to it each time she kicked, clawed or swatted her imaginary enemy. When the moment was right, she started the first stage of her plan.

* * *

><p>"Get away from me!" Maplepaw hissed. But she wasn't hissing at the toms. She was hissing at the darkness beyond. She heard murmuring outside, and then the hesitant pawsteps of one of the toms coming into the cave. Deciding to lead him in further, Maplepaw scuttled further into the dank cave and called again.<p>

This time the sound of pawsteps was louder. She hid in the shadows at the edge of the cave as Owlclaw stalked into the main chamber.

"What do you think you're doing prisoner? You got orders from me to stay quiet. You know I don't like Blackstar's 'respect the prisoner' way of thinking. Come out here and let me see you! Hurry up! Don't play games with m-" Owlclaw was cut off by a silent attack.

Maplepaw shoved him to the ground with his muzzle pressed into a small but surprisingly deep puddle. She couldn't resist digging her claws into the back of his head, causing the tabby tom to squirm in agony beneath her claws. He couldn't talk without letting a tide of water into his mouth, and his breathing was quick and shallow from his nose. He was looking up at her with undisguised hatred; his long claws scraped against to surface of the rock.

Smirking slightly, Maplepaw wrapped a bind of ivy around the tom's muzzle and because cats cannot tie knots, she had to make do with wrapping it around and tucking it in with a series of twists and flicks. Next, she did the same thing to both his back legs and forelegs, before finally steeping back to admire her handiwork.

He managed a feeble hiss at her before slumping down his shoulders in defeat.

No matter how much he had done to her, she hated seeing him like this. The muscular warrior had been turned into a trapped captive. Before she left to finish her plan, Maplepaw leant over and whispered in his ear.

"They'll find you as soon as they realize I'm missing. I'm sorry that it was reduced to this."

The tom tried to snap something that could have been ''It'? What is 'it'?'

But Maplepaw was gone without a sound, and the tom was left alone with only his own thoughts for company.

* * *

><p>Nearing the entrance once again, Maplepaw scented the air. Spikepaw was alone. Sneaking forwards, Maplepaw scanned the entrance. Where was he?<p>

A scuffle alerted her of his position and she instantly whipped around to face her attacker. She could see him now. Spikepaw was padding deeper into the cave, calling out for his clan mate.

_Great,_ she thought sarcastically, _if he sees Owlclaw, I'm as good as dead. _

Deciding not to waste any time, Maplepaw charged forwards and crushed Spikepaw up against the wall. He hissed at her and clawed her chest, taking her by surprise. With an impatient hiss, Maplepaw kicked his belly and the tom crumpled to the ground. She was just about to run away when he grasped her tail in his jaws.

It took all the force in her body not to screech out loud, and it was even harder not to yank it out. She knew that a Shadowclan cat was taught this as one of their first moves because it was an easy one to get away with.

When the cat yanked its tail free, they would damage the nerve in the tail slightly. This, of course, was extremely painful and would leave it dazed so that the Shadowclanner could attack again.

Thinking fast, Maplepaw kicked out with a hind leg, catching him around the face. He let go with a startled yelp but leapt forwards again. He crashed into her and they went flying across the cave in a tangled mass of tooth and claw.

When Spikepaw got the upper paw, Maplepaw found herself trapped beneath his paws. Suddenly, there was a yowl from deep within the cave. _Owlclaw!_ Maplepaw thought. She began to panic but Spikepaw was even worse off. He looked as though he couldn't decide between his captive or his clan.

Owlclaw's claws could be heard pounding against the cold stone floor. Suddenly, the weight was released from her shoulders and Spikepaw was looking at her desperately.

"Run!" He hissed.

"But-"

"There's no time, just go!" Spikepaw shoved her in the direction of the entrance. With a last look of gratitude, Maplepaw turned to leave. However, she felt so in dept that she whisked around, pushed her nose to his blood-stained cheek in thanks before running out of the cave. She wouldn't be going back there, not ever.

**Hello all! I kept my promise! 29****th**** of January and I updated! WOHOO! Ok, so thank you for all the kind reviews and I suddenly realised that Sky's kits should have been born by now because it takes roughly 2 months for a cat to develop in its mother's uterus (correct word?) And then she gives birth so… Yeah… Sky's kits are waaaaaay over due. SO…. REVIEWS!:**

**Doglovermastiff: who is ,maybe? Sorry, maybe it didn't send properly. But for now, I will just take it as a: 'Maple I like the story and I have a fave character but I'm not telling u HA!' XD ok? The review u posted (TO ME) says: ****,maybe?****  
><strong>**is my favorite**** So yeah. Sorry for not understanding. Thanks for reviewing! I bet it was just the system failing to load properly.**

**Splinterclaw: Why thank you!**

**Birdflame: Spikeclaw I like. MapleFACE?! No offence to you, but I don't think I'll use that one. Although, it does sound very… professional… snazzy… I DON'T KNOW, I'LL THINK ABOUT IT! And yes, fanclubbers unite! (although I don't want the free cheese samples that come with the imaginary application form for the cheese one. I'll wear a protective suit in meetings too if that's alright?) **

**Smiley face (guest): Thank you! Treefeather sounds good! Although I was sort of planning on Ravenfeather… *Clasps hand over mouth* SPOILERS! MAPLE HOW COULD YOU?!**

**Thank you for all the reviews! I changed the settings, so now guest reviews come to the page quicker, so I can answer them ON TIME! Anyway, please review! (but only if you want to. We are a safe environment here at UTSOTMT!)**

**REVIEW! ALTHOUGH IT IS OPTIONAL…**


	11. Alone in the Medicine Cat Den

Maplepaw pelted through the undergrowth, her paws aching. She could scent Thunderclan but she didn't know where she was. Tree branches and brambles whipped past her face with millimetres to spare as she ducked and twisted through unknown territory.

She could hear the pounding of paws behind her as she emerged from the bushed. She spotted a sober-faced Thunderclan patrol on the border. They had come!

"Help me!" She yowled as loud as her parched throat would allow. The whole patrol looked her way immediately and their eyes lit with joy.

"Maplepaw, you're alive!" Silverstream mewed happily. She then caught sight of the Shadowclan warriors behind her apprentice and her hackles rose.

Maplepaw felt her energy draining. She could feel the hot breath of Shadowclan warriors on her heals. Then all of a sudden she was knocked off her paws by a swipe from behind. She heard the Thunderclan cats yowl her name as she was dragged backwards.

But she wasn't going down that easily.

Whirling around, Maplepaw struck out at the brown tabby behind her. It was Tigerheart, and she knew from her days in the Dark Forest that he was a good fighter. However, the sight of her glowing eyes and familiar features made the warrior freeze. She grinned, even though battle raged around her.

"Long time no see?" She mewed innocently. She then struck out with a sharp kick with her back paws and Tigerheart disappeared into the fray. Maplepaw could see that Thunderclan outnumbered Shadowclan by at least three cats, and the Shadowclanners didn't want to risk more injuries. One by one they peeled away until the last tail disappeared into the bushes.

"Maplepaw, are you OK? We need to get you to Jayfeather as soon as we can, look at you!" Silverstream mewed worriedly.

It was the first time Maplepaw realized that her cob web bandage had come undone. The blood was flowing freely once more and her head reeled.

She couldn't quite make out Silverstream and then suddenly there seemed to be two silver she-cats in front of her. Then they merged together and split once more. Black dots began to swirl before her eyes and the world was spinning.

She took a few steps forward, Bumblestripe catching her as she toppled over. She leant on his shoulder the whole way back, feeling as though more and more of her world was falling apart. She didn't know where her paws were, let alone her actual legs and so she just went through the motions in a daze.

When they reached camp, her mother was the first cat to reach her. As she fell to her knees, Dovefeather smothered her in licks while her father and siblings pressed comfortingly against her. The rest of the clan was chanting her name or asking worried questions. Jayfeather finally pushed his way to the front, spitting and cursing under his breath as he tripped over tails and stray limbs.

Maplepaw began to slip away. She didn't fight it. She just slipped slowly away into the comfort of sleep.

Someone was slapping at her face. She jerked awake and felt a sudden sickness churn in her stomach. She gasped slumped over into her nest. The sharp tang of herbs hit her full on and she almost slapped the cheeky kit that had woken her. Other than this kit, she was alone in the medicine cat den.

Sky hurried in and scolded her kit. But Maplepaw didn't hear her. She couldn't. She nearly cried out in surprise when she realized that no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't hear the worried and angry words Sky said. When she was gone, Maplepaw stumbled out of her nest and tumbled forward. She couldn't hear her paws as they pounded against the ground.

Panicking, Maplepaw tried to organize her legs as they flopped about beneath her, almost like when she was a kit and didn't know how to walk. When she scrambled into the main clearing, all the hustle and bustle of the clan should have met her ears. It didn't.

She wanted to scream. But her mouth still felt parched and if she did open it, she was sure she would throw up. She didn't know where to go, so she let her uncoordinated paws take her were they wanted to.

However, that wasn't the best idea. Almost as soon as she reached the centre of the clearing, she crashed into Sunpaw. The golden she-cat spun to face her and began an angry speech, which of course poor Maplepaw couldn't hear. She opened her mouth to try and explain, but she then remembered the problem with opening her jaws.

It was too little too late. Maplepaw opened her mouth to speak and her stomach suddenly tightened. Unfortunately, Sunpaw didn't read the signs and thought Maplepaw was pulling faces at her. As Maplepaw's mouth was forced further open by the slight spasm that being sick causes, Maplepaw's ears popped and she was bombarded by sound.

Her stomach tightened again and she threw up all over Sunpaw. The pretty she-cat shrieked in horror and tried to get away but it was far too late. She was covered in stinking, steaming vomit.

The rest of the clan looked on in shock. Or disgust. Sunpaw finally found her voice at the same time as Maplepaw, but Maplepaw was quicker.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to! I just bumped into you and-"

"I don't care! It doesn't matter! Just get this… This… Stuff off me!" Sunpaw's ear tips her red with embarrassment, anger or both.

"Ooh, mummy, look! Sunpaw's ears look like my fur!" The she-kit from earlier squealed. That was when Maplepaw realised that it must be Sky's.

"Sky, your kits have come! How many are there?" Maplepaw asked the queen, forgetting momentarily about Sunpaw.

"Excuse me? I'm covered in goo?!" Sunpaw butted in angrily. Like I said, only _momentarily_ forgotten.

Sky completely ignored her.

"Two she-kits! This is Redkit," Sky pointed to an exited red-and-white she-kit, "and this is Nightkit!"

The proud queen gestured to a uniquely patterned she-kit. Her fur was midnight black but her fur was flecked with crystal white spots all over. Her deep green eyes looked distant and although she seemed reluctant to leave her sister's side, she didn't seem keen on joining in with the explorations of clan life.

Just as Sky looked about to go on (probably to explain how she thought of their names or some other motherly thing) when Jayfeather appeared carrying a wad of moss.

"Sqcrape ift off wid dis." He managed through the clump of moss.

Looking extremely undignified, Sunpaw scraped the gunk off as best she could. She was then ordered to wash it off in a stream before coming straight back here so as not to catch a cold. Maplepaw herself was told to go back to the medicine cat den.

And so, Maplepaw was alone in the Medicine Cat den again.

Maplepaw was dreaming. She knew she must be, because she recognised the slight starry tint to her fur.

But she was running. She didn't know where to, but the wind was slicking back her fur and she had to squint to stop the wind drying out her eyes.

Mile after mile, bound after bound; the moorland went on and on. Her legs, usually quite stocky were now as long and slender as a Windclan cat's legs.

Her fur, she noted, was a dark grey almost black, like Shadowclan. It was also thick and waterproof like a Riverclan cat.

Her claws were long and hooked to allow her to climb trees like she was learning to in Thunderclan.

_What is going on?_ She wondered. However, just like any dream, none of these changes seemed to bother her and she ran on and on. She didn't feel tired, or out of breath, just elated as though in a chase.

Suddenly, she began to slow down, until eventually she was ambling along. She didn't know why, but she looked behind her. She froze.

Behind her the Sun was rising at great speed, shooting into the sky. But that wasn't what had frozen Maplepaw's paws to the ground. It was the fact that it was getting closer, a huge flaming ball charging towards her. But it was changing.

It was getting closer and closer to the ground, the flames moulding together. First two paws and legs appeared, and then two back paws and back legs. The flames were knitting together and creating a long, feathery, flaming tail. A neck, head and ears came next, before a body moulded into place. The details soon formed, and Maplepaw could see it was clearly a cat.

But that cat was charging towards her, with other cats, all flaming just like their leader were appearing and running together.

Maplepaw finally found her voice and screamed. She turned and ran.

Up ahead was a line of trees which she was certain hadn't been there before. Although she was worried that if she ran there the flaming cats would set the forest alight, she didn't have a choice. Her paws were heading in that direction and she couldn't change them.

As she ran, a cat with spiky fur ran beside her, and above her flew a raven with the most beautiful black plumage. She was so taken by the raven that she forgot about the cat beside her. When she reached the forest, the raven flew off and so she was left with the cat. She turned her head to face it while she ran and stopped dead.

The cat had no face.

It was just a black hole where it should have been. Then shrieks filled her ears. Fox scent filled her senses and she nearly buckled under the sheer amount of it. Blood now poured from the whole where the cat's face should have been and it died with a shriek.

Maplepaw was running again. She didn't dare look back. The flames from the Sun had set light to the forest, and she didn't see a way out. Suddenly, the raven appeared again. It swooped down towards her as the flames surrounded and made out to engulf them.

But the Raven was like some sort of magic force. It glowed and puffed out its plumage until it looked more like a bird of paradise than a crow-food eating pest.

The flames had to go around them; the raven had created a sort of globe that kept the flames at bay.

A voice began to chant in her ears. A ringing, screeching desperate voice.

"_When the Sun's Beams begins to glow, the drought will start. The only Shade will be that of the Maple Tree_…"

It repeated the statement over and over until Maplepaw wanted to scream. Her head and paws ached, her ears rang and her fur was brittle and smoking from the heat. But just as she parted her jaws to screech, the raven beat her to it.

It let out a violent, terrified howl more like a cat than a bird, before it began to smoulder and bleed. She recognised the howling. She nearly leapt forwards to catch the bird as it fell ungracefully to the parched ground.

"Ravenpaw!" She yowled, letting out all the fear and pain. He was the voice in her ears. He was the one screeching. He was the one protecting her from the flames.

Her eyes shot open.

Alone.

Alone in the medicine cat den.

**HELLO! I am in disgrace. I am so sorry Birdflame, I know I said a few days (we were talking) and then homework happened and tiredness happened and… BAH. At least it wasn't a month, right?**

**Ok, so I am sooooo grateful for all the reviews! You wouldn't believe how exited I was when I saw that not only had plenty of people reviewed, but we got new members to the UTSOTMT squad! AKA people who reviewed for the first time. Honestly, I was bouncing of the walls. At least, metaphorically. If I did that I would be yelled at… ANYWAY… moving on…**

**I would like to say thank you to Birdflame, who owns the two latest additions to Thunderclan: Nightkit and Redkit! They belong to her, not me, so the credit of their awesomeness goes to her. While we are crediting and disclaiming things, I want to point out that I don't own Warriors either. If I did would Silverstream and Mapleshade have to be put back in on a fanfiction story? Nope.**

**Reviews!**

**Splinterclaw: Thank you! She is, isn't she?**

**Guest: Really? Why don't you like her? I guess there are plenty of good reasons to dislike her… But I don't mind, as long as you enjoy reading this it's all good! Maybe I could persuade you to change your mind…? He he he...**

**That-girl-from-outer-space6: Wow, a long user name! Anyway, it is a good one. And thank you! Sorry I didn't update as fast I I would have liked, but as you probably guessed, school happened. -.- THE JOYS OF LIFE! What does love smell like? And you never, know with love, do you?**

**Birdflame: Maplebreeze is beautiful! I think I might use it… I don't know but I definitely like it! And thank you for the kits, I hope you like how I described them. Tell me if I need to change anything, and I will ask you before I pair them off or kill them or something. Not that I would kill them. Eheh… BAD EXAMPLING SKILLS MAPLE. Sorry. I do worry for myself sometimes. Anyway… Moving on… *Cough cough***

**Dark Hollyleaf (Guest): I know right? Maplepaw is just too fabulous. Sometimes. And I do think Spikepaw is wise, if not a little rash at times. **

**Icestar (Guest): Maybe. You will have to see. BECAUSE I HAVE THE BOOK THAT TELLS ME WHAT I AM WRITING ABOUT TODAY. (AKA my planning thing.) MWA HA HA *cough hack cough cough* He he… Sorry about that. But I do like them as a couple, which is linked to this chapter's question at the end.**

**Snowflower3618: Thank you! Mapleshade will always be my favourite cat. I also think she is pretty… What made you think she was that pretty? I mean, I get that she is just fabulous and all, but what gave you that idea? I agree with you though! XD Anyway, I hope I didn't disappoint you with by bad updating skills, and I am trying to update more often! IT WILL HAPPEN! (eventually…)**

**Rainpelt (Guest): Thank you! Sorry for not updating quickly! Thank you for reviewing!**

**Thank you for all the reviews! Wow! I enjoy answering all of them, even if it means lots of clicking and typing. But I love it! Jees, I sound like some over exited 5 year old… Sorry about those moments, I do try to stay calm. I will work on it! **

**I thought I would do another question for you all to think about, considering at least two reviews were on that topic of conversation. **

**So, the question is…**

**If you could pair Maplepaw up with any tom cat in the four clans, who would it be? **

**Just please, don't say Ashfur because of obvious reasons. (He is her father…) **

**Thank you for reading! If you want to review or have questions, just review and ask me anything u want to know about UTSOTMT and I will do my best to answer it. As I said in the last chapter, we are a safe place here at UTSOTMT. Gosh, I feel so professional saying those sorts of things… But seriously, don't feel embarrassed.**

**~Maple **


	12. Medicine Cat's and their Prophecies

**Just a quick announcement! You may already know about the story 'Windsong's Sadness' and the fact that the original writer felt unable to continue it? Well, she allowed me to continue it! I will post the chapters as she sends them so me and then when we reach where she left off I will write the rest myself. Please look at it? I don't need reviews or anything but if you have something to say, hit the review button on the new story! **

**(Sort of) Co-writing Windsong's Sadness should not slow down my updates on here! **

"So you're telling me that you had a bad dream and you came to wake me up? Because you were scared of the Sun…?" Jayfeather was staring in her vague direction in disbelief and annoyance. Mainly annoyance.

"No, let me explain!"

"Go back to sleep Maplepaw."

"But-"

"GO!"

"Listen! I think it was a dream from Starclan!"

At the sound of the holy clan's name, Jayfeather paused just as he was about to snap back a retort.

"Yes…" Maplepaw had decided to tell the medicine cat about the dream, although she didn't like sharing it so early. She had meant to keep it a secret, but she wanted answers more.

"Tell me about it. But not here." Jayfeather led her outside. The night was still young as the two cats padded out of camp.

"Where are we going?" Maplepaw questioned the Medicine Cat.

"We are going to a place where no one can eavesdrop on us. This could be important, but I don't want any cat hearing about this and telling the clan about it!" Jayfeather mewed impatiently.

After that they walked in silence, Maplepaw quietly admiring how Jayfeather moved with ease through the forest without hitting a tree or even a clump of grass.

Finally, they reached a small clearing hidden by ferns and a bramble tunnel that Maplepaw had had to crawl under in a most undignified manner. She was still pulling thorns out from her rear when Jayfeather began to talk.

"So, we are safe here, tell me about the dream."

And she did. She surprised herself with how open she was, and how easily she explained to Jayfeather about how she had been running, the strange sun, the spiky furred cat with no face, the fox scent, the raven and the flames. However, she still felt uncomfortable to mention the prophecy.

"And then, the raven died… And… And it said… I mean the voices…"

"You can trust me you know." Jayfeather mewed. She was surprised again at how gentle he was being. Where was the irritable, unsociable Jayfeather that the clans had come to love?

He pressed against her, urging her to continue her tale.

"And the voices," She spoke with an air of confidence now, "The voices started ringing in my ears, telling me the same thing over and over. _When the Sun's Beams begins to glow, the drought will start. The only Shade will be that of the Maple Tree_… Then I woke up, and the nose died away…"

Maplepaw recited the prophecy as if she had been telling Greystripe why you had to step lightly when hunting mice. It was so deeply imbedded into her mind that she barely needed to concentrate to recite it clearly.

Jayfeather was looking at her through slit eyes. Or at least, he was facing in her vague direction and seemed to be looking.

"I will have to think this over, let's go back to camp."

"That's it?!" Maplepaw asked, surprised.

"Well, yes, it's not like I can do anything yet. We don't even know if it is important or not-"

"What do you mean whether it's important or not? Of course it is important! I just let you in on one of the many things I never tell anyone, let alone someone who I rarely talk to, and you tell me that this isn't important?!"

"Now calm down Maplepaw, don't wake up the whole forest-"

"Don't tell me to calm down! I need answers! I don't even know why Starclan even sent m-"

She stopped dead. She had nearly let it slip! She had nearly let her most important secret slip, and over what? Jayfeather: she hated that tom, but he was the only cat she could turn to for answers. She had tried for ages to speak with Appledusk in her dreams but they always ended in the same way. The beautiful raven withering before her, dead.

"Look, I'm just tired. I didn't mean to be rude. Let's go back to camp."

And without another word, Maplepaw was gone, leaving Jayfeather on his own to catch up.

She was tired, sore and so irritable that she could easily rival Jayfeather himself for grumpiness. She didn't understand haw Jayfeather could just brush away something so serious. I was clearly a prophecy. In fact, she was so annoyed that she doubted anything would make her stop before she got to camp, even a mouse who practically begged to be caught.

It was just as she thought that very thing that a high pitched squeal filled her ears. _Was that_ _Redkit?!_

"Wait!" Maplepaw yowled as she heard another terrified squeal.

Charging as best she could through the thick undergrowth, Maplepaw finally crashed into a small clearing. In the centre stood a huge badger, at least three times her size and weight. Bellow the creature three kits cowered. A white and ginger she-kit stood defiantly in front of one pretty night coloured she-kit with white flecks and a tiny tom-kit no bigger than Maplepaw's lower foreleg.

The badger snarled and raised a paw. It would kill the kits within a moment! Maplepaw charged forward. To be completely honest, she had no idea what she was doing before she had done it.

Leaping forwards, she gave a last few bounds before reaching the kits. Shoving them aside, she turned her head aside and covered her neck with her shoulder.

The blow, which was far harder than she had anticipated, caused pain to rocket through her. The badger's claws struck her shoulder which she had raised to avoid contact with her neck. The beast then dragged those claws down over her side. She knew that if she didn't move it would hit her stomach, so at the last minute she jerked her body downwards, forcing the claws over her back. They ripped down to her tail bone and she shrieked as the beast lost its footing as she lashed out, causing the claws to dig into her flesh.

Claws digging strongly into the ground, Maplepaw spat defiantly in the badgers face. Her side was burning like the flames in her dreams, except now it was real.

Using her paws she deftly yanked the badger's paw from her tail and bit into it. She then let it drop and jumped onto its back. The badger bucked and reared, trying to toss Maplepaw off but she held on, her grip stronger than she expected.

The badger, which had turned out to be a huge male, was now ignoring the annoying limpet thing on its back and turned its attention back to the kits.

But Maplepaw was faster. Quick as an adder, Maplepaw leaped from his back and in a few short strides reached the kits.

"Get on my back!" She hissed. The badger was drawing closer by the second and though the two she-kits, Redkit and Nightkit, had both made it safely onto her back, the small tom didn't budge.

His tiny claws were buried deep into the ground and his eyes were shut tight. Maplepaw made a grab for him but was knocked out the way by the badger.

She didn't know what else to do. She couldn't let the kits on her back die, but what about this other kit? She couldn't just leave him! Suddenly, she had an idea.

"Help me! Badger! Help! Bramblestar! Thunderclan! Anyone! " She howled at the top of her lungs. She knew that they were not far from camp. If the stench of blood and badger didn't reach camp yet, then her voice would.

"Hold on tight," She muttered to the kits. They nodded eyes wide and frightened.

Taking a deep, shaky breath Maplepaw jumped. She soared over the Badger's head and landed next to the tom-kit. Grabbing his scruff, she made a dash for the trees. The badger lumbered after them, but Maplepaw was in flight mode. She doubted even a Windclan cat could catch her now.

As she pelted through the forest, she felt herself gasping for breath. She couldn't breathe through her mouth because of the kit, and breathing through her nose was even more difficult. Blood had dribbled down onto it and she wasn't getting enough air.

She could hear the badger catching up, and so she risked slowing down to pass the kit to Redkit. But when she tried to hand him to her, Redkit wouldn't open her mouth. Nightkit lent forwards and grasped the tom's scruff, giving Redkit an encouraging nod. But Redkit wouldn't open her jaws, or even lean forwards to offer support as Nightkit hauled the tom up. She was frozen, as though in a trance.

Shaking her head, Maplepaw charged off again, taking in gulps of fresh air. Finally, she spotted the camp. Her excitement lent her energy, and she called out:

"Help us! Badger… Chasing…" She was puffing as fresh warriors pelted out of the entrance and tackling the badger.

Finally feeling safe, she stumbled into camp. To her surprise, Ravenpaw was the first at her side. He even beat Sky to her kits. He began licking her wounds and scolding her for going out at that time of night without another warrior with her.

"What would I have done without you? I would have to wait until I died to see you again, and that could be ages! But then, I would wait forever to see you…" He broke off, looking awkward, and carried on cleaning her wounds.

She rolled her eyes. Honestly, even though Ravenpaw could say the sweetest things, they were all a bit too… fluffy for her liking. But at that moment she didn't mind.

It was only later that day that she could see him again. Jayfeather had treated her wounds and made her spend the rest of the day with him in the medicine den. It was either that or having to spend the night there, and she knew which one she preferred.

She padded into the apprentice den and padded towards her nest. Her nest was one in the centre next to Ravenpaw's. But as she grew closer she realised that Sunpaw had taken over her nest. It stunk of her!

But Maplepaw wasn't going to stand for that. Taking the dirty bedding, she flung it crossly to the edge of the circle. Then, taking some fresh bedding, Maplepaw made a new clean nest for herself. When Ravenpaw returned, he beamed at her.

"Thank Starclan you did that! Not even littermates can stand for the things she does in her sleep. Moaning and groaning, kicking her legs in my face, honestly!" The black tom mewed.

He settled into his nest beside hers and they started chatting about her wounds and the fight with the badger.

All too soon Sunpaw came back from hunting.

"What do you think you are doing in my nest!" she shrieked.

"I'm not in your nest." Maplepaw replied calmly.

"Yes, you are."

"No, I'm not."

"That's my nest though, so shove off."

"No, this isn't your nest. _That's_ your nest." Maplepaw smirked, gesturing with her tail at the lump of dirty bedding in the corner.

"You're lying."

"No, I'm not. Go over there and sniff it if you want proof, if you don't then be quiet." Maplepaw purred.

She then curled up into a ball facing Ravenpaw, snickering with his as they watched Sunpaw's reaction as she found that her scent really was all over the bedding.

Ignoring her complaints and accusations, Maplepaw fell asleep, lulled into it by Ravenpaw's soft purring.

**Ta daa! Next chapter is up! I'm sorry I haven't update much; it has been a busy week with me and all the horses just chilling out together. All except for Frank… He is just never calm… Moving on! (Oh by the way they are not my horses, they belong to my local stables.)**

**So thank you for all the positive reviews! I enjoy hearing your thoughts and feelings about the characters. I don't have a question for you all to answer this week/chapter so instead, if you want, come up with the warrior names for some cats in UTSOTMT?**

**And now, the reviews!**

**Doglovermastiff: I agree, they are cute together!**

**Dark Hollyleaf: They are a good couple I suppose. But I won't say any more. And did you win the 'dashing young male's heart'? You left me on a cliff-hanger. XD **

**Birdflame: You could say that. I prefer to call it an undignified sniffle, but I guess it is a cold… How do you know? ARE YOU TELEPATHIC?! CAN YOU READ MY MIND?! XD**

**Splinterclaw: Why thank you.**

**Hiddenheart51900 (Guest): before I reply properly to the review, can I just say that that is an impressive amount of numbers in that name? I have to go back and forth between the pages to make sure I copied it down right. But it is a good screen name I think. Moving on…. And I totally agree with your tom choice. Not that I promise anything. You must have good taste though! *nods approvingly* **

**Rainpelt (Guest) (first review): I agree that Maplebreeze is definitely a great name. I also think that rushing cats like that is good in some stories if it is intentional. But don't worry; even if I tried Maplepaw cannot be rushed. Honestly, try getting her to hurry up when she is doing her fur it takes ages- OW. MAPLESHADE COME BACK HERE. WE TALKED ABOUT SLAPPING. IT IS NOT NICE. *chases Mapleshade around the room bashing her with the laptop* **

**Rainpelt (guest, second review): Thank you! Here is your chapter! Well, not your chapter but you know… eh… MOVEING ON… What are you top three favourite stories then? I feel honoured to be counted as part of it! I might like them too.**


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